


Two Souls

by ManlyQuail



Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Cute, F/F, Fluff and Angst, POV Alternating, POV Multiple, Romantic Fluff, Romantic Soulmates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-12 17:33:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 26,860
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28639323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ManlyQuail/pseuds/ManlyQuail
Summary: In the world of Remnant, everyone is born with a soulmate. As a person grows they get a sense of their soulmate and what kind of person they are. Through a bond between them, particularly strong feelings make their way through, and for better or worst two people find themselves connected in a way that transcends all other connections. However, just because this bond is felt, does not mean you always find the person on the other side. In a world as populous as Remnant, it can be difficult if not impossible to find your true love, but that will never stop those who inhabit it from trying.
Relationships: Blake Belladonna/Yang Xiao Long, Robyn Hill/Winter Schnee, Ruby Rose/Weiss Schnee
Comments: 46
Kudos: 209





	1. Soulmates

“Mommy, what’s a ‘soulmate’?”

A child with neck length raven hair and a pair of tiny kitty ears atop her head frowned nervously as she approached her mother in their family’s living room. Her mother, with similar features and matching golden eyes, sat with a book in her lap sipping slowly at a small cup of tea. The mother’s expression turned to one of surprise as she gently set the book and cup aside, patting gently on her lap for the small child to crawl up and sit.

“Where did you hear that dear?” Tilting her head curiously, the cat ears atop her own head twitching to match the thoughts, the mother smiled softly at her daughter as she nestled in close.

“I heard some kids in class talking about it! They were talking about all these things I didn’t understand, and they kept saying the word ‘soulmate’!” The daughter’s brows were furrowed in frustration, her own curious nature causing her worry over this unknown term.

“Did I hear something about soulmates?” A sliding door of their home opened, and a towering man with a thick black beard that followed his jawline towards his matching combed back hair stepped in. With golden eyes matching that of his wife and daughter, he looked between the pair with a stern gaze, settling eventually on his daughter.

“It seems so. Little Blake here heard kids at school talking about it, so I guess it’s time we have  _ that _ talk.” With a soft smile to her husband, Kali Belladonna gestured to the seat beside her, the sizable couch easily fitting the three of them with room to spare.

The stern gaze of Ghira Belladonna fell to one of nervousness as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his head, a hand matching the massive size of him brushing through thin black locks. His steps through the sizable living room were slow, his mind playing out how best to describe the concept of a soulmate to his one and only daughter.

“I figured we’d have a little more time. Kids these days, they all seem to be in such a hurry to grow up…” Eventually lowering himself to the seat beside his family, Ghira looked between Blake and Kali with a heavy sigh. “Would you like to get started? I think I need a little time.”

“Of course.” Chuckling to herself, Kali gazed over the muscular form of her husband. His rather regal and open purple cloak exposed the powerful build of his torso, a thick patch of black fur in the center of his chest covered thinly by a silver metal band attached to spaulders at his shoulder. From his build, he was a fighter, plain to see to all, but in this moment he was nothing more than a nervous father. “Now then Blake, did the other kids tell you anything about soulmates?”

“No!” Pouting in her seat, Blake’s ears drooped slightly as she grumbled slightly to herself. “Most of them teased me for not knowing about it, nobody would tell me anything!”

“There there.” Patting her daughter’s head gently, Kali gave her daughter a comforting smile. “It’s nothing to worry about, everyone learns at a different age.”

“So what is it!” With eager eyes, Blake looked to her mother, who placed a finger to her chin in contemplation.

“I guess the easiest way to describe it is a feeling. Sometimes, when your mind wanders, you might suddenly feel something and you don’t know why. You can be having the best day ever and for some reason feel sad, or during times of worry find yourself strangely happy. You might find sudden interest in a book you’ve never read, or a food you’ve never eaten before. There’s a lot of different ways you  _ feel _ a soulmate, and one day, you may even get the chance to meet them.” Turning her gaze to Ghira, Kali gave the man a loving smile, seeing him gently relax as she spoke. He matched her gaze, the two thinking back to the day they met, before Kali felt a tug at her black hakama.

“So it’s a person? But a feeling person?” It was clear Blake’s young mind was having difficulty imagining what her mother was describing, lips still in a pout as she did her best to understand.

“Something like that. Take your father and I for example.” Once again, their gazes met, and Kali remembered her youthful impressions of the man she was destined to fall for. “When I was a girl I was always the shy and quiet one, but one day I suddenly became rather...feisty. I wasn’t sure why, and when your grandmother told me it was likely because of my soulmate I didn’t understand either. Well, as it turns out, your father was a bit of a troublemaker when he was your age, so any time he was causing mischief I would always  _ feel _ him doing it. I didn’t know who he was at the time, but I got a feeling for the type of person he was.”

“Yes well, times for the faunus were tough. I had to be a little scrappy to get by.” Coughing as he averted his gaze from his wife, Ghira shook his head and turned his attention back to his daughter. “Anyways, much like your mother could feel me, I could feel her as well. No matter how chaotic things around me were, through her I always felt a comforting calm, something that told me things would be alright. It was years before we finally met, but I’d like to think that through our connection your mother kept me happy even when we were so far apart.”

“And when we finally met, it was like magic. In an instant I knew who he was the moment I saw him, though admittedly I was a little worried he’d be nothing but a big brute. As it turned out of course, your father was nothing but a big teddy bear under all that muscle.” With a teasing look to her husband, Kali then looked back down at Blake, who was deep in thought.

“Will my soulmate be a big meany like Daddy was!?” With a worried expression, Blake looked to her mother as her father hung his head in shame. Kali chuckled, shaking her head and shrugging.

“Who knows? Everyone’s soulmate is different, and sometimes it can be hard to tell. Your father and I were different enough that we knew instantly if what we were feeling was through the other, but for some people their soulmate is so much like them that they never really notice the difference. All I can tell you for sure is that one day you’ll find that person who will make your life complete.” Gently brushing her fingers through Blake’s hair, Kali could see her daughter’s eyes light up in excitement.

“So when do I meet them!” Hopping up and down in her mother’s lap, Blake watched as her mother once again shrugged.

“Well, that’s hard to say. For some they meet young, others don’t meet for years, and some people never meet at all…” Kali trailed off as she could see the growing disappointment in her daughter’s eyes, and she quickly backpedaled the thought. “Of course, with the new communication’s technology these days, I think your generation will have the easiest time finding their soulmate. Don’t worry Blake, you’ll find them some day.”

\---

That conversation between Blake and her mother had happened a little over 17 years ago. Having just passed her 20th birthday, Blake’s eyes were glossed over as she scrolled through numerous profiles on a soulmate website known as ‘ _ TwoSouls _ ’. The site worked by every user creating two profiles, one based on themselves, and the other based on anything and everything they could put regarding the feelings they’d gotten through the bond with their soulmate. After that, the site would look through the dual profiles of other users for sets that matched up, and introduce the pair to one another. While the site only had about a 30% success rate, it was still better than nothing.

Leaning back in her chair, the screen of the computer glowing in the dark of the night, Blake let out a heavy sigh as she scanned over the profile she’d built of her soulmate.

Interests including automotive work, the person had definitely gone through a bit of a partying phase, strong willed…

The list seemed to go on forever, Blake having provided as many details as possible, but by this point the algorithm was desperately providing her profiles with as little as 10% matches to the profile she'd built. To her the entire situation was starting to feel hopeless, and Blake stared at the details she’d provided wondering what else she could possibly put down. Deciding nothing more could be done for the evening, she shut off the computer and began to get ready for bed.

In the washroom, looking herself over in the mirror, Blake couldn’t help but imagine what her soulmate would be like. Judging by the traits she’d picked up on over the years, she imagined at the very least it was likely a guy. Plenty of her schoolmates had found their soulmates over the years, many of them meeting on the small island of Menagerie that her family lived on, and Blake had seen the entire gamut of pairings in that time. She herself knew she wasn’t picky one way or the other, but at the very least figuring out their gender would be a huge help in letting her identify her soulmate. Still, she did her best to remain open minded, knowing that in this day and age gender stereotypes were beginning to mean less and less.

As she continued to gaze across the image of herself in the mirror, her hair grown down to her waist now, Blake fantasized about what kind of traits _she'd_ given off to  her soulmate. Maybe the reason the two hadn’t found one another on the site was due to her own poor descriptions of herself. Blake worried that she might’ve been a little biased when filling out her own profile, doing her best to hide certain facts about herself from anyone that might come across it, in particular her taste in books. If there was a chance that her soulmate  _ felt _ her feelings while reading certain chapters of the novels she owned, they might think her to be some sort of deviant and list their soulmate as such. With a deep sigh, contemplating a revamp of her profile, another thought floated in the back of Blake's mind as well.

_ What if you just gave up on the whole _ _thing?_

It was a conversation she'd had with a close friend who also had yet to find their soulmate. Ilia Amitola had been the closest person in her life, aside from her family, and been the source of a great deal of comfort when she previously vented her frustrations regarding the inability to find her soulmate.

"What do you mean?" In one particular conversation the pair had had on the topic, Ilia had proposed the two of them give up on the whole soulmate process entirely.

"Well, how many people really ever _find_ their soulmate? Plenty of people have to settle and accept they'll _never_ find them, and at the end of the day, if you find happiness elsewhere won't your soulmate feel it too? What more can you really do beyond that?"

The argument was convincing to Blake at the time, and even now she still thought about it a great deal. She could tell that her frustrations in the search were affecting her soulmate, feeling similar frustrations from the other. If she instead simply settled down, found happiness in another, surely that would make her soulmate happy as well?

With her teeth brushed, Blake's eyes lingered on her reflection a few moments longer. At the very least, leaving her profile up a little longer wouldn't hurt anything, and with a defeated sigh she turned off the lights and settled in for the night.

\---

Halfway across the world, a blonde haired girl with lilac eyes stretched her arms out as she woke to the world. With a yawn, she felt a strange sense of frustration, and groaned as she started to imagine what part of her day was causing such feelings. Wondering if perhaps she’d put off one too many chores, or that today would be a hectic day at work, Yang Xiao Long began to put the pieces together and let out a sigh.

The past two years she’d felt this constant anxiety within her gut, this constant worry and growing frustration that she couldn’t quite put her finger on. She’d long since figured out such feelings must be emanating from her soulmate, and it too began to cause her frustration as well. It felt like a vicious cycle, that the frustrations caused by her bond would lead to her having her own frustrations, which likely flowed back through the bond to the other. It’d taken a great deal of willpower to be able to ignore the ever present feelings, and as more and more time passed Yang found herself repeating a question in her mind.

As she stepped into the kitchen of her home, a modest location where she stayed with her family on the tiny island of Patch, Yang spotted her father through blurry eyes. Her nose twitched, the welcoming smell of coffee drawing her towards him as he sipped from his own cup.

“Morning Yang, sleep well?” Her father had always seemed like a morning person, Taiyang Xiao Long ever ready to take on the day. It was a trait she hadn’t inherited from him, the bags under her eyes begging for more sleep, but the work day ahead meant she wouldn't be able to sleep in. With messy blonde hair, a few shades darker than her own, his blue eyes analyzed her mood as he frowned.

“Sorta. Rough morning is all.” Pouring her own cup, Yang took a steady sniff of the brew, and took a cheerful sip as the warm liquid flowed through her. It wouldn’t kick in right away, but Yang knew that this cup would be what got her through the day.

“Still dealing with soulmate stuff?” Raising his brow, Taiyang looked to his daughter with concern. She’d mentioned the growing frustrations felt through her bond months prior, and while he’d assured her that it was nothing more than a phase for the other person, the fact it had gone on for this long was beginning to fill them both with doubt.

“Yeah, I think so. They just always feel so  _ annoyed _ and I don’t get it! Are they only annoyed because I’m annoyed at them being annoyed all the time!?” Yang’s voice rose higher than she intended, her still groggy state causing her not to realize how loud she was speaking, and with a sigh she took another sip of her coffee. “Is it possible to change soulmates Dad, cause I think mine is broken.”

“I don’t know about all that.” Chuckling to himself, Taiyang shook his head and placed his mug on the counter. “I still think it’s just a phase, and maybe the both of you should just try a little harder to be a positive influence on the other.”

“Well yours changed didn’t it?” As the minutes ticked by, Yang felt herself steadily waking up more and more, and as she looked to her father she could tell she’d hit a nerve by mistake.

“My situation was...complicated.” Frowning to himself, Taiyang lifted his mug once more and gestured for Yang to follow him to their living room. Each of them took a chair, placing their mugs on a center wooden table with a glass pane set in the center. “When your mother left I honestly didn’t expect to find another, especially so late in the years. Meeting Summer, well, call it a fluke but it was a second chance not many get.”

“Still, it changed didn’t it? Like, my soulmate could be  _ wrong _ or something right?” Knowing that her father’s love life was still a sensitive topic, Yang did her best to try and keep the discussion based on her own experience.

“I think it was more that your mother and I changed than anything else. A soulmate is, well, it’s supposed to be the person perfect for you. Usually it’s the same person your whole life, but if things happen that change a person enough, on rare occasions your soulmate changes because of it. If I’m honest I don’t think you’ll just  _ get _ a new soulmate just because you want one.” Chuckling to himself, sensing that Yang wasn’t entirely satisfied with his answer, Taiyang did his best to stay positive even in light of his own personal past.

“I guess. It just really makes me doubt the whole process y’know? I mean, I get that everyone is  _ born _ with a soulmate, but so many people never meet them that it’s hard not to get annoyed with the whole thing! I can’t even imagine how lucky it was for you to find yours not once but  _ twice _ , and maybe even…” Yang trailed off, realizing where her rant had gone, her voice lowering to a whisper.

“Despite what you’re thinking, there won’t be a third.” Finishing his daughter’s thought for her, Taiyang found himself surprised that he was smiling.

“Really? I mean like, there isn’t…” Looking to her father, knowing the topic of her stepmother’s passing could be a heavy topic, Yang pursed her lips in concern.

“Nothing. Just me in here now.” Gesturing across himself, Taiyang shrugged, still smiling softly to himself. “But I think that’s a good thing.”

“What do you mean?”

“I think it means that Summer really _was_ the one . I haven’t rebonded with Raven since Summer’s passing, and given I haven’t bonded with anyone else either I don’t know if I ever will. Summer was indescribable really, and honestly I’m happy that the universe has decided that what we had was as true as love ever gets.” Taking a lengthy pause, the silence between them was broken as the scroll in Yang’s pocket began to sound with an alarm.

“Ah dang, I’m gonna be late…” Quickly realizing the alarm for her to leave for work was going off when she wasn’t even close to ready to go, Yang scrambled from her seat and gulped the remainder of her coffee down as quickly as possible.

“Need a ride? I can get the car ready while-” Somewhat thankful by the interruption to their conversation, Taiyang stood to grab his things, though Yang simply shook her head.

“I got it. Besides, with the way you drive I’ll end up even later.” Yang shouted from down the hall, quickly changing into her work attire and reappearing in the living room moments later madly attempting to comb through her messy hair with her hands.

“The way _I_ drive? You mean following the speed limit?” Raising a brow, Taiyang watched as Yang pulled her glossy yellow motorcycle helmet from the hat stand by the front door, quickly strapping it to her head as she threw her bag over her shoulder.

“Exactly! See, you understand.” Rushing to her father’s side, Yang gave him a quick peck on the cheek, and started to run out the door.

“Hey! Drive careful, you don’t want to get pulled over! And remember, try and stay positive today! I promise it’ll help!” Shouting from their porch, Taiyang watched as Yang wasted no time throwing her leg over her golden bike as the engine roared to life. A few revs later as she back out of the driveway, and from where he stood Taiyang could already tell Yang was blowing past the speed limit before she'd even left the neighborhood.

As the wind ripped and tore past her, her eyes focused intently on the road before her, Yang couldn’t help but begrudgingly repeat the words her father had told her over and over in her mind.

_ Stay positive... _


	2. Different Worlds

“I simply don’t understand it. Nearly half a dozen times she’s made such a frivolous and unacceptable request! Perhaps Klein has been too lenient in his care when Weiss is out of our sight.”

With a sneer, Jacques Schnee paced back and forth in his study, a fine glass of scotch on the rocks clinking gently as he swirled it in frustrations. Head to toe every inch of the man was a pristine white, including his hair, moustache, and the double breasted blazer with not a wrinkle to be found. His frustrations were spoken aloud to his wife, a woman who matched his pale skin tones, though her dress attire of a sleeved jacket over a pencil skirt dawned hues of navy blue with white sleeves. He growled openly, growing concerns about his daughter’s future filling the space.

“She’s only a child Jacques, a request for a cookie is to be expected of a girl her age. I don’t understand why this is such an issue.” Through eyes that had become tired through years of a troubling marriage, Willow Schnee watched her husband vent out his feelings. To see a grown man so troubled by something so little as a cookie, it was almost a laughable situation, but Jacques had consistently proven time and time again how truly unreasonable a man he was.

“It’s not just simply a request for a  _ cookie _ that’s the issue here! Weiss is to be a dignified representative of our family and she must be instructed of proper etiquette and acceptable behaviors early! Proper dining, a diet of refined cuisine, manners befitting that of royalty; Winter had no trouble mastering such skills at Weiss’s age, and yet for some reason _she_ sees fit to throw it all away for a  _ cookie _ .” Jacque glared at his wife, his chest heaving as he fumed in anger. Her expression was neutral, exhausted from his rant, and he shook his head in disappointment.

Looking around the room, Jacques reaffirmed himself of everything their family stood for. Expensive glassware and pricy bottles of aged alcohol filled a cabinet closest to him, while priceless paintings that grew more valuable by the minute occupied every space on the wall he could fit them. Everything about his office, including the very chair and desk he worked at, were the best money could buy. It was a lavish life of refined taste and dignity, and he knew that every member of the family he’d married into was a potential risk to everything he’d become accustomed to. Winter had already begun to push him, talks of joining the military as opposed to working at the family company having to be consistently snuffed out, but in the event Winter truly did leave them he would ensure that no sure failures were suffered with Weiss.

“Perhaps it's her soulmate.”

Willow spoke softly, thoughtful about what could be causing such a distinct behavioral pattern in their daughter, but despite her best intentions to get to the root of the issue her words only seemed to infuriate Jacques more.

“Her  _ soulmate _ ? Someone so common amongst the people that they have a consistent desire for something so mundane as a  _ cookie _ !?” Rolling his eyes, Jacques downed the last of his scotch, slamming the glass down on his desk with enough force to make a point, but holding back enough that he wouldn’t damage either item. “Unacceptable. If that’s the case then Weiss will simply have to be trained to ignore the bond. We’ll find her a suitor from a family we know when she comes of age and ensure that our family name retains its dignity.”

“Like we did, so long ago?” With a cold expression, Willow looked to Jacques, who merely nodded to himself.

Willow and Jacques, as was the case with many of the well respected families of Atlas, were not soulmates by any stretch of the imagination. Despite the fact that many Atlesians found themselves bonded to those likely in far away lands, with what Jacques described as mundane and unrefined tastes, their allegiances to the identities their families had built over generations often meant that unions between families were prioritized over the bond. Many marriages such as theirs ended in a loveless connection, one of emptiness purely maintained to ensure that the bloodlines would continue. For a time, Willow had faith that Jacques would make her happy even despite their lack of the bond, but times like this only continued to remind her that this man could never bring her joy.

“Precisely. It may be difficult for her at first, but when she’s our age and capable of living and admiring the lavish life we’ve helped build for her she’ll thank us for the troubles.” Jacques had long since known Willow’s true feelings for him, and to him the feeling was mutual. All that mattered was that they maintained their place in the world, and ensured that their children followed suit. Nothing more, nothing less.

“If you think that’s what needs to be done.” With a defeated voice, her strength to argue having faded long ago, Willow felt a tiny internal pain that Weiss would likely suffer the same fate as her mother. In her mind she yearned for the girl to have a better and brighter future, but she too knew the wrath Jacques Schnee could bring down upon those that crossed him.

\---

In her room, Weiss Schnee’s pale blue eyes skimmed side to side across the text before her. It would be the fifth hour of her study, preparation for the entrance exams to a prestigious school her family contributed a great deal of lien to consuming the majority of her time. Age 20, the girl had spent her entire life on a never ending road to self perfection, and shortly after this fifth hour ended she would spend a short time dining quietly with her family before entering rehearsal lessons for an upcoming performance her family would be hosting for a charity event. Weiss would be the main attraction, her vocal talents enough to even sell recordings of her work, and merely starring at such an event would no doubt draw a crowd that would please even her impossible to satisfy father.

Brushing a stray strand of snowy white hair, a universal trait across all members of her family, Weiss tucked it gently back into the braid that flowed down her back. Amidst the silent concentration of her studies, there was a consistent feeling buried deep within her subconscious. Without realizing it, Weiss had begun to gently tap her foot, her head slowly bobbing as she began to hum to herself. It was a song she was unfamiliar with, but subconsciously she knew every beat and every note as if she’d heard it a thousand times. A soft smile had begun to form, and she steadily began to lose focus on the text before her.

After finding that she’d read the same opening sentence to a paragraph in the text for the third time, Weiss snapped from the sudden trance. She’d become rather lax with her training, and she found that more and more the effects of the bond were seeping through and affecting her everyday life. If her father found out she had no doubt he would be furious, and even without such knowledge he already felt a growing frustration with her consistent denial of potential suitors presented before her. Jacques had attempted on many occasions to threaten her with an arranged marriage, where her input on a potential suitor would be forfeit and he would make the final decision for her, but Weiss had become too important to him to risk a situation similar to that of his eldest daughter Winter.

Her older sister had indeed gone through on the plans she’d spoken of as far back as she could remember. The woman meant to inherit the Schnee Dust Company once Jacques retired, Winter had instead turned her back on her lineage, deciding that she would carve her own path in life instead of simply living through one set out before her. It was admirable, Weiss thought, that her sister had such a strength of will. However, after Winter surrendered her status as the heiress, the home life for Weiss and her younger brother Whitley had become rather intense. As much as she dreamed of setting out on her own path, the romantic fantasy of staking out in hopes of finding her soulmate calling out to her, Weiss dared not cross her father in the same way Winter had.

Instead, she had found small ways to rebel, little behaviors such as relaxing her personal training or the small test she'd put to every suitor he’d ever presented to her. To that day not a single one had passed.

As Weiss gazed thoughtfully out her window, the setting sun in the distance with the shattered moon overhead, her mind focused on the rhythm of the music she felt in her heart. Despite her years of training, on many occasions the bond had sent her sensations from her soulmate, and she’d put together at least a general image in her mind of what they were like. Whoever it was, she felt they were younger, at the very least by a year or two. It was someone with a very carefree attitude, little to no inhibition, and a great deal of free time. She found herself envious of the person, though at some moments she worried they may be far too immature for her to handle. In her lifestyle, people that behaved as she felt her soulmate did were spoken of rather unfavorably, and she was all but certain it would be the type of person her family would disapprove of.

In a twisted sense, this fact only seemed to drive Weiss further into the desire of finding them.

Pulled from her thoughts, a gentle bell rang through the halls of the manor, and closing the texts before her she stood and prepared for dinner.

\---

“Ruby. RUBY. TURN DOWN THE MUSIC.”

After her lengthy time at work, Yang Xiao Long returned home to vibrating walls and deafening pop music. Even with her ears adjusted to the sound of booming engines and revving motors, Yang found the music to be just a tad beyond acceptable volume and wondered if their neighbors would stop by any minute to provide them with passive aggressive comments regarding the noise.

Pounding her fist on her sister’s door, Yang pushed in to find the girl bobbing her head intensely, eyes closed and completely lost to the beat as she danced and swayed in her seat. Crossing the room, entirely unnoticed by her younger sister, Yang cranked the knob of the speakers down to 0.

All at once short black hair with tips of crimson twirled as Ruby Rose’s head flipped around to face her sister. A combination of surprise and annoyance filled the girl’s face, her silver eyes moving between her sister and her now silent stereo.

“Yang! I was listening to that! And why are you in my room!?” Oblivious to the fact that not only had  _ she _ been listening to the music, but so too had the entire neighborhood, Ruby immediately stood and went to turn the music back up only to be stopped by Yang’s outstretched arm.

The shorter girl reached her own arms out, trying a combination of motions to either move her sister or turn the music back up, only to eventually let them dangle in failure.

“ _I’m_ here because you had the music up so loud I could hear it turning onto our street. What’s with you? I'm surprised having it up that loud doesn't give you a headache or something.” Giving Ruby’s forehead a gentle push, Yang watched as Ruby took the tiny amount of momentum and used it to fall backwards onto her bed. The bed itself looked like it could easily belong to a far younger girl, as did most of the room. Posters of superheroes and numerous fantasy characters lined her walls, and her shelves were filled primarily with small figures of characters from her favorite TV shows. It was a collection the younger sister had been putting together for years, and even as she entered adulthood, the collection only continued to grow.

“Not really. In fact, I use it to  _ prevent _ the headaches!” Rubbing her temples slowly, Ruby grumbled to herself before placing a hand on her chest, squeezing tight the pajamas covered in images of small dogs.

“How in the _world_ does that work?” Plopping herself down on the bed beside her sister, Yang lay out beside her.

“It’s that stupid bond thingy! You know that feeling when you get assigned a  _ ton _ of homework, and your brain just starts to hurt from all the reading? It’s like that, but  _ all the time _ . I can’t stand it! All I know is that when I blare the music and jam out it all starts to feel a little better.” With a soft sigh, Ruby rolled her head to the side, staring at the amused expression of her sister. “Didn’t you say it always feels like  _ your _ soulmate is reading all the time too? Shouldn’t you understand my  _ pain _ !”

With a dramatic motion, resting her arm over her eyes, Ruby peeked out from beneath the arm to gauge her sister’s reaction.

“Well uhh, she reads  _ different _ sorts of books. More fantasy, sort’ve… you know what it doesn’t matter!” Yang’s cheeks reddened as she suddenly felt flustered. The sensations she’d felt through the bond when she assumed her soulmate was reading tended to vary greatly, but it felt like no matter how dramatic a section of the book started things became rather  _ steamy _ by the end. “Anyways, my bond has all sorts of other issues that I’m trying to sort out.”

“Well can’t we like, trade? Fantasy books sound amazing, I want your soulmate!” Rolling over to face her sister, pouting in frustration at how unfair she felt the situation was, Ruby’s stomach suddenly let out a violent growl.

“I don’t think it works like that.” Chuckling at her sister’s growling stomach, Yang sat up and stretched out her arms. Ruby followed suit, her eyes moving towards the stereo for a brief moment, before her stomach growled again. “Anyways, let’s get some grub. By the sounds of it I’m not the only one who's starving right now.”

“Fine, but can I play music while we eat? I’ll keep the volume down this time…” Eyes moving back to the stereo, Ruby’s continued pout caused her sister to finally give way.

“Okay, but only if you promise that if I say it’s too loud that you’ll turn it down without complaining, got it?” Yang shrugged, deciding that she wouldn’t mind some music while they prepared dinner, but was surprised when Ruby stood and hit the play button once more. Skipping the pop song that she’d been listening to, a new song began to play, the soft hum of a violin and a gentle accompanying piano filling the space as she slowly raised the volume. “Is this  _ classical _ music, or like, some sort've opera station?”

“Yeah, what’s wrong with that?” Pulling the speaker system from her messy dresser, Ruby quickly skirted away from her sister in fear she’d further meddle with her music.

“Nothing, just didn’t peg you for the type is all.” Chuckling at Ruby’s reactions, Yang shrugged and found herself somewhat enjoying the music herself. While it was far from her first choice of things to listen to, the vocals that filled the halls of their home as they made their way to the kitchen were undeniably beautiful, and despite her inability to reach certain notes, Ruby subconsciously began to softly sing along with a bright smile.


	3. Invitation

There was a gentle tapping in the darkness, the tick of a nail against the surface of a lightly glowing mouse as a small cursor danced near an ‘x’ on the screen.

_ Are you sure you’d like to delete your profile? This action cannot be undone. _

Biting her lip, Blake stared at the options to cancel or to follow through, her heart pounding in her chest as anxiety filled her system.

If it had been just a day prior, Blake may not have hesitated. Her conversations with Ilia had become more and more tempting, the talks of letting go and simply finding happiness in another instead of chasing a dream seeming more reasonable by the day. Happiness sent through the bond, it’s what would be best for the both of them right? The anxiety and frustration she’d sent through the bond for the past several months had been returned, and it felt like she’d been reaching her breaking point.

Until that morning anyways.

When she awoke, Blake imagined that once more such feelings would flow through her system. Guilt, anxiety, worry, frustrations, the emotions she’d come to associate with both the bond and her own situation regarding the search for her soulmate, but instead there was this tiny spark of joy. It was off-putting at first, and Blake couldn’t imagine what was causing it, but a particular thought did fill her mind.

\---

“I wonder if they’re doing what I’ve been telling you this whole time! See? It’s more common than you think.”

Blake had gone to Ilia with her new discovery, her mind filled with questions and hope, but it only seemed to help Ilia in her drive to have Blake move on.

“It seems like such a big coincidence though. What are the odds someone on the other side of the bond is talking my soulmate into moving on too? It's just… I think there’s something else at play here, I just don’t know what yet.” A blush had taken over Blake’s cheeks as she became lost in alternative thoughts. Despite Ilia’s insistence over the past months steadily wearing her down, this tiniest of positive signs was enough to reignite her passion in one day finding her soulmate.

“Come on Blake, we’ve talked about this! Seriously, you don’t want to end up like Adam do you? Let it go…” Ilia trailed off, Blake’s blushing face falling cold as she shot Ilia a dirty look.

“I’m  _ nothing _ like Adam. This is different, I’m telling you!” Blake shook her head, standing from the end of the dock the two had been sitting at. Their feet had been gently resting in the sea, waves of crystal blue lapping gently against their toes as they talked, and with a heavy sigh Blake kicked off tiny flecks of water before slipping on her boots.

“That’s not what I meant!” Ilia stood quickly as well, doing her best to keep Blake from leaving with a gentle hand on her shoulder. “I just worry about you Blake. I know what it’s like to want to find your partner, but it's different for the faunus. We can’t just stroll around the human kingdoms in search of a love we might never find!”

Her voice had become loud, almost accusatory in tone, and Blake let out a heavy sigh with her back to Ilia. It wasn’t as if the girl was wrong, and she knew how far the bond could drive a person down the wrong path, but at the very least she didn’t think she could let go so suddenly after feeling such passion for the first time in months.

“Listen, Ilia, I’ll think about it okay?” Turning back to Ilia, Blake frowned and did her best to force a small smile. “I’m just trying to enjoy the first day of positivity I’ve had in awhile. Can I at least have that before we do anything else?”

There was some hesitation in Ilia’s eyes. She could tell Blake’s commitment to abandoning her pursuit of her soulmate had faded slightly, but it would be cruel of her to try and tear away Blake’s happiness and expect her to just drop everything for her sake. With a sigh of her own, Ilia removed her hand from Blake’s shoulder and gave a slow nod.

“Yeah, of course.” It wasn’t a fully committed statement, but it was enough for the two of them to set aside the conversation for another day.

“Thank you Ilia. I promise you we’ll finish this conversation tomorrow, okay?” Still forcing her gentle smile, doing her best to raise her friend’s spirits even a little, Blake pulled Ilia into a tight hug. It took a second, but Ilia eventually returned the gesture, though with far less enthusiasm.

“No problem.” It was clear Ilia wasn’t entirely happy with the turn the day had taken, that to see Blake be pulled so far back into her pursuit of her soulmate filled her with dread and pain. All the same, there was nothing more she could do.

\---

Their conversation hours earlier hadn’t left Blake’s thoughts the entire day. In particular, the remark that she may fall into a situation similar to Adam had stung, but she worried it wasn’t an entirely inaccurate prediction.

Adam Taurus had been a passionate man. Much like herself and hundreds of others, his drive to find his soulmate was a powerful one. The idea of finding the person that completes and fulfils you is beyond tempting, but when the world around you seems to be falling in love while you find yourself continually alone, it can begin to wear down your will. Most, like Ilia, would eventually cave and decide that the search wasn’t worth the trouble, that through the bond finding happiness in their own life would bestow their partner with equal joy. A few such as Blake would stick it out a little longer, and in extreme cases such as Adam, would let their pursuits consume them.

For Adam it was his one and only dream to find his soulmate. Though he was a few years older than Blake, the way he walked through the halls of their school and around town with such confidence and eagerness was almost inspiring. She’d known for a long time that she’d do anything to find her soulmate, and to see a person like Adam instilled her with the hope she'd one day do just that. However, as time passes, and as people grow up to face the sometimes cruel realities of life, such passion can take a dangerous turn.

Obsession. Years later this word had come to be the easiest way to describe Adam’s thoughts regarding his soulmate. What were once inspiring and respected words of hope had turned sorrowful and admittedly annoying to Blake. He’d garnered popularity and followers out of those who shared in his dream that they too would one day find their soulmates, but as many like Ilia moved on or eventually found their loves, Adam’s fans pulled away as they settled in for others and carved out their own paths of happiness. Further there were whispers, rumors that he truly didn’t have the courage to follow through and journey through Remnant in search of his soulmate, that it was the popularity from boasting such claims that truly made him seem like an inspiration.

Until one day his flowery words and dramatic speeches came to an end.

It was in an instant, and many were confused or shocked as to the cause. In that week Adam had seemed more zealous than ever, pleading for people to follow him and together find their soulmates in the land of man, but as more and more turned away something in him seemed to change. The day he was meant to leave, the day he’d sworn he would take a ship to the mainland and begin his journey, he was nowhere to be found. Despite the fact nobody intended on joining him at this point, many showed up to see if he’d be a man of his word and follow through, but when the gentle breeze and calming sounds of waves against an empty dock were all that met the crowd people began to whisper once more.

When Adam was finally found, he was alone in his apartment, a blank expression on his face. From that day forward, no matter how many people were around him he no longer spoke tales of soulmates, his words no longer carried dreamy promises of a brighter future, and instead he simply walked around with a cold and lonely look.

Of course, speculations arose from his behavior. The consensus had been that somewhere along the long he’d lost his bond. That perhaps in losing the popularity and fame that he’d held onto for so long it had changed him enough that his bond no longer held, that his soulmate was no longer the person it had been for so many years. Others took darker assumptions, that his insanity had passed through the bond, that his ramblings and passions had driven his soulmate over an edge or had finally caused something in the other to snap and that the bond had been broken from the other side.

Regardless, everyone agreed that the bond which once drove every decision Adam had ever made, had vanished.

It was chilling, and Blake shuddered at the thought of her own passions taking her down a similar road. She hadn’t been as boisterous or loud in her pursuit, mostly sharing her thoughts and feelings with Ilia while browsing social platforms such as  _ TwoSouls _ to aid her, but with the look Ilia had given her that morning she couldn’t help but wonder if she was blinded in a similar way Adam had been.

It was these thoughts that had her sitting at her computer, the midnight hour ticking past, in deep contemplation about deleting her  _ TwoSouls _ account.

“I don’t know what to do…” Groaning to herself, Blake withdrew her hand, rubbing her eyes in sleepy frustration. Then, a single sound through her headset drew her attention once more towards the website she was on the verge of leaving forever. In the corner of the screen, where settings, options, and messages would appear, she saw a single red bubble with a tiny message beneath it.

_ You have (1) new notification from TwoSouls. _

\---

The morning light in the room of Yang Xiao Long was normally a reminder of the day to come. When she awoke, there were a few seconds where she stretched out and grinned to herself about the lingering memories of the dream she’d been having, before the emotions of her soulmate would trickle through the bond and decide how her day would begin. In the past months this had become a time of dread, where whatever frustrations and annoyances her soulmate were feeling from the previous day would bring down her mood all at once, where Yang would struggle to get out of bed and make her way down the stairs to greet her family with messy hair and a grumpy expression.

Instead, as she waited for her mood to shift while staring out at the rising sun, Yang found the smile on her lips not fading as usual.

In fact, she felt  _ excited _ .

_ Must be a fluke… _

Tossing the covers off, Yang went through her morning routine of brushing her teeth, getting dressed for the work day, and soon made her way down the stairs with a surprising skip to her step.

“Morning!” Making her way into the kitchen with a chipper expression, Yang found Taiyang just now putting on the coffee, and she couldn’t help but chuckle. “Late morning?”

“Wh- Nope. Same old morning.” With the machine starting to heat, Taiyang leaned against the counter in patient wait, and he couldn’t help but give his daughter a baffled look. As she herself tilted her head in confusion, hopping up on the island in the center of their kitchen with a surprising amount of energy, Taiyang withdrew his scroll in curiosity.

“Well then you’re late with the coffee. I’ve gotta be at work soon y’know!” Teasing her father’s slow start to the day, teasing he normally reserved for her, Yang could tell her jab hadn’t so much as phased him.

“More like you’re early.” Showing the home screen of his scroll to his eldest, Taiyang couldn’t help but be amused at Yang’s expression as her eyes glanced at the time.

“Woah, that’s weird.” Scratching her head and leaning forward to try and get a better look at the position of the rising sun through their kitchen window, Yang shook her head and frowned. “Huh. Guess I am down here pretty early aren’t I? Weird…”

“You said that already.” With a laugh to himself, the coffee machine's slow gurgling coming to a stop as it beeped beside him, Taiyang poured the pair each a cup as Yang continued to stare off in space with a look of bewilderment.

“Yeah I guess I did.” Taking a steady sip of her coffee, she winced slightly and quickly set the mug down to pat at her tongue. “Ahh that’s hot! Dad what the heck!”

“It just came out of the pot, what did you expect?” Stepping forward towards Yang, Taiyang put the back of his hand gently against her forehead to check for any signs of a fever. “You feeling alright today? You’re acting, well, weird.”

“Yeah, I’m fine dad.” Brushing her father’s hand away, pouting her cheeks in childlike fashion at his actions, Yang blew gently on the surface of her coffee before once more smiling to herself. “Guess I’m just in a good mood this morning. I wonder if something happened with my bond.”

“Bet it’s that positivity I told you about yesterday. If one of you is miserable and so is the other, well then that’s all you’ll get. Throw a bit of positive thinking into the mix and you’ll be surprised at how much it can change things up.” With a knowing smirk, confident that his recommendation to Yang had gone just as he’d hoped, Taiyang’s eyes suddenly went wide. “Oh, right! Speaking of the bond, there was a flyer in the mail I think you might be interested in.”

With his mug set aside, Taiyang moved towards the living room and began to shuffle through the mail still spread out across their coffee table. Yang leaned to the side from her seat on their kitchen island to try and get a good look at whatever he was looking for, when he came back with an eager smile and a red flyer in hand. With a raised brow, already able to see dozens of tiny pink hearts covering the page, Yang looked down with a frown as her father handed her the strange flyer.

_ TwoSouls charity gala sponsored by the Schnee Dust Company!  _ _ Special Guest: Weiss Schnee _

As her eyes scanned across the details of the flyer, including a time, a place, entry fees, and a list of entertainment and activities that would be present, Yang couldn’t help but frown and check the back for anything further.

“Charity gala?” Yang had never pictured her family as the type to go to events so fancy as a charity gala, especially one being held in Atlas, where she imagined it would be a collection of only the snootiest people talking about things like art or statues. “What makes you think I’d be interested in this?”

“Well I figured with your soulmate issues this could be a good way to try and meet them.” Despite his continued grin, Taiyang could tell he’d missed the mark entirely in assuming Yang would be on board for the event. “Look, I know it’s tough and the bond can be a problem for a lot of people, but I think it’s worth a shot to at least go to something like this now and then and see what happens. No harm in it is there?”

“No harm outside of traveling halfway across the planet to an event where I won’t know anybody in hopes of finding a person that might not even be there.” Despite her lack of interest in the event, her eyes slowly made their way back to the flyer, and for a lingering moment she let a fantasy of what  _ could _ happen fill her thoughts.

“It’s not  _ that _ far. At least, I don’t think it is.” Pondering to himself how far exactly Atlas  _ was _ from Patch, Taiyang shook his head and waved it off. “Anyways, just give it some thought. I met Summer at an event like that, and this was  _ after _ already having met one soulmate. Sometimes the universe surprises you and throws you a bone.”

Still staring down at the flyer, Yang drooped her shoulders slightly and lowered her head in defeat.

“I’ll think about it, but I won’t make any promises okay?” With a soft smile, lilac eyes skimming over the text once more, Yang sipped the final drops of her coffee and slid from her spot with a gentle tap on the floor.

“Great! I know this is gonna be a great thing for you to try kiddo.” Ruffling his daughter's hair, Taiyang chuckled as Yang fended off his arm and finished her preparations for work. 

With the revving of a motorcycle outside as Yang tore off towards work, Taiyang enjoyed the silence for a few moments before the sound of violin hummed softly through the halls. Moments later, his youngest daughter Ruby who'd been awoken by her sister taking off for the day, stumbled into the kitchen with a yawn. Her headphones, the same color as the cape trailing behind her, were blaring classical music, and reaching out towards the flyer he motioned her over to tell her all about the gala.


	4. An Eager Energy

Weiss’s voice fell quiet, her vocal performance fading with the accompanying piano played by her younger brother, until the music hall of the Schnee Estate filled with silence. With a deep breath of relaxation, a soft smile that mixed pride and confidence in her abilities, Weiss looked towards her father who sat in observation nearby. His face showed deep contemplation, his eyes moving between Weiss and Whitley, before he gave a nod and stood with a smile.

“Excellent. Should you manage a performance such as that on the stage then I have no doubt this charity gala will be a smashing success.” Even going so far as to clap for the pair, a very rare show of affection from their father, Weiss couldn’t help but give the tiniest of bows in response.

“You surprise me father.” Stepping from the miniature stage in the corner of the enormous hall, the walls and architecture the same pristine marble texture as the rest of the mansion, with comfortable and expensive seating across a priceless rug, Weiss hurried to Jacque’s side. “I never expected you to have so much interest in the success of an event dedicated to charity. In particular an event dedicated to soulmates finding one another…”

Seeing Jacques so enamored and somewhat excited for the upcoming  _ TwoSouls _ event was baffling to Weiss. Her entire life had been spent under strict tutelage to suppress her own personal bond, and given her parent’s strained relationship she knew neither of them were the biggest of advocates for true love. She imagined that somehow he had an ulterior motive, but with the charity event run by an outside company, part of her was curious what he had up his sleeve.

“Yes well, this particular charity has garnered my interest more in regards to whom the money will be sent off to rather than the topic of conversation.” Jacques briefly broke his stride as he caught a sideways glance at himself in one of the many massive mirrors that lined the corridors of their mansion. Frowning to himself, adjusting his tie and suit to avoid any wrinkles or bumps in his attire, he turned his attention briefly to Weiss. “You know better than anyone the effectiveness of training to suppress one’s bond. Think about it, hundreds of other people unable to control their own feelings! Did you know that more than 40% of people that never find their soulmate end up with mental health problems? I’m merely looking forward to money going to fund training such as yours to better get a handle on this whole bond issue.”

“And let me guess, you happen to  _ personally _ know some of the people in charge of these mental health training centers? Am I to imagine that someway or another you’ll somehow see some of these charitable donations lining your own pockets somewhere along the line?” With a raised brow, entirely unconvinced that her father was the type of person to give a damn about  _ anyone’s _ mental health, Weiss watched as a shiver seemed to go through her father.

“Why, I… ahem…” Quickly finishing the adjustments to his suit, doing his best to avoid the accusatory gaze of his daughter, Jacques merely shrugged his shoulders and stroked his chin. “Well there’s no harm and making a little money if in the end it helps people now is there? Regardless, your performance is going to also highlight your own talents as well. More CDs, more popularity and fame, you only have everything to gain by going as well.”

"Perhaps I'll even meet someone." With a smirk towards her father, the talks of her lack of a suitor a source of constant strain between them, Weiss watched as Jacques merely gave her a sideways glance with narrowed eyes.

"Yes well, that _is_ the point I suppose, though I wouldn't get any funny ideas." Despite the casual remark that she may find her soulmate at the event, Jacques primary concern was that his daughter might continue drilling his motivations for participating in the gala, and instead merely nodded to himself confidently in the mirror with his attire to his liking before striding away towards his office. This time, Weiss did not follow him, and instead gazed at herself in the mirror. 

To her surprise, Weiss found that she was once again smiling, an excitement growing in her stomach regarding the near future and what this performance might hold for her. In fact, despite hours of practice, studying, and training, she felt more energetic than ever. As her eyes moved from the mirror to the enormous windows that showed the estate courtyard, Weiss began to stretch out her legs.

_ "I think I’ll go for a run..." _

\---

The squeaking of the couch had been actively going on for it’s thirtieth minute as the handle to the front door of the Xiao Long home turned. Ruby, clutching tightly onto the flyer her father had shown her, had been unable to sit still ever since she learned there was a chance she’d be able to see Weiss Schnee live. Before the door could even finish opening entirely she was off the seat and at the door in an instant.

“Hello! I’m ho-  _ oof _ ” Absentmindedly opening the door, a smile on her face after yet another strangely positive day, Yang was suddenly ambushed by her little sister. With arms tightly wrapped around her waist, a twinkle in Ruby’s silver eyes, Yang immediately recognized it as a look that would be followed with a great deal of pleading. “Alright, what is it?”

“Soooo Dad showed me this flyer…” Pulling away from her sister, Ruby snapped the flyer as wide as it could and held it close to Yang’s face. The elder sister pushed the flyer down, looking down at her sister with a knowing look, before glancing towards the kitchen where their dad was not-so-subtly watching the interaction.

“You planned this didn’t you?” Staring down Taiyang, Yang watched as he quickly pretended he’d been doing something else, before he chuckled in recognition that he’d been caught.

“Well I mean, I  _ might’ve _ known how your sister would react if I told her about the event.” Rubbing the back of his head as he walked towards the pair, he shut the door behind Yang as she made her way to the living room with Ruby still glued to her side. “I think it’ll be good for the both of you, and if anything it’ll be a good concert to go to. You know how much your sister is into classical music these days.”

“Please Yang! Please please! Most of the music I’ve been listening to is Weiss! I’m such a huge fan, and maybe I’ll be able to meet my soulmate while we’re there! Dad said he met Mom at a place like that!” Hopping up and down in an unstoppable fervor, Ruby was slowly pushed to arm’s length by Yang who let out a heavy sigh and gave a slow nod. “Yes! You’re the best!”

Ducking her head enough to break from Yang’s push, Ruby once more closed the distance between the two of them to embrace her in an even tighter hug than the earlier one. Then, in a blur, she had disappeared up the stairs towards her room. It wasn't even a minute later that the sudden sounds of violin, piano, and operatic vocals began to fill the home, sounds that both Taiyang and Yang had started to grow accustomed to.

“Well there goes my weekend.” Smiling towards the stairs her sister had disappeared up, Yang looked towards Taiyang who was standing with a matching grin.

“Don’t sound so disappointed Yang, it’ll be good for the both of you.” Sliding down into the seat of his favorite couch in the living room, Taiyang watched as Yang hooked her motorcycle helmet onto the coat hanger by the door.

“You keep saying that, but do you  _ really _ think I’ll meet my soulmate at an event like this? I’m not even on that site, so isn’t it a little weird to go to their event?” Sliding into a chair close to her father, Yang frowned to herself as she thought about the astronomical odds she’d come away from the event meeting the love of her life.

“Well I mean, it worked for me. I can’t say you'll have the same luck for sure, but I think just putting yourself out there is good. Aren’t you the least bit curious or excited to meet your soulmate?” Tilting his head, a worried expression towards his slightly cynical daughter, Taiyang did his best to give some encouragement.

“I guess I used to be. Who wouldn’t be, y’know? But after all that frustration and anxiety through the bond I guess I just got sick of the whole thing.” Stretching out in her seat, letting her limbs and joints pop as she relaxed and mellowed down after the lengthy work day, the smile that had infected Yang came slowly crawling back. “These past few days have definitely brought back some of that excitement I guess. I just don’t want to get my own hopes up is all.”

“They say you miss all the shots you never take you know.” Chuckling to himself as Yang shot him a look, Taiyang shrugged his shoulders. “I won’t lie to you and say you’ll end up like Summer and I did, falling in love our first time at a big event like this one, but I also won’t tell you to go in with low expectations. The more you put yourself out there, the more sites or whatever kids these days are using, the higher the odds you’ll find them. You just gotta hold on to a little hope is all.”

“You sound like a walking advertisement. Think I could get all that printed down in card form? If worst comes to worst I could set up a booth and make some of your money back with some inspirational posters on the side.” With some laughter shared between the two, Taiyang nodded his head slowly.

“Guess I do sound a little like that don’t I? Guess I’m just being nostalgic, meeting Summer was the best thing that ever happened to me, aside from Raven, but you already know that whole story…” Still nodding to himself, lost in thoughts of days gone by, Taiyang clapped his hands together and stood. “Anyways, enough chit chat, how about you help your old man get supper ready?”

“Sure thing, I’m thinking some heart shaped burgers, maybe we paint little flowers and even more hearts with the ketchup-” Once more teasing her father, Yang was pulled into a headlock as he gave her a gentle noogie on the head.

“Alright smartass,  _ you _ get to set the grill tonight.” As Yang broke free, the pair let go some more laughter before the smell of food began to fill the home.

\---

In her room, Ruby was rolling over and over in her bed, the flyer clutched tightly to her chest as her voice did it's best to keep up with the vocals given off by her stereo. Her voice broke frequently, many of the notes far above her personal range, but she'd never stop trying to reach them. The grin on her cheeks, the rosy blush matching that of her cape and the tips of her hair, Ruby couldn't help but constantly lift the flyer and simply stare at it for minutes on end. The excitement was impossible to quell, and rolling over to bury her face in her pillow, she let out a scream of pure joy.

_"I'm going to see Weiss Schnee in person!"_

The blissful thought was filling her with such boundless energy, however she was suddenly caught off guard by another thought.

_"Wait... but what then?"_

Ruby's mind started to race. While on the one hand it was true, she would be _seeing_ Weiss in person, that was an entirely different matter than actually _meeting_ her. Eyes skimming across the flyer once more, she looked for any indications there might be any form of backstage pass or a meet and greet to talk with the artist. While there was mention of CD sales and recordings of the concert that would be offered to guests at a later date, she couldn't find any information about what it would take to actually meet and talk to Weiss face to face. Furrowing her brown, her face contorting into a mixture of concentration and frustration, Ruby tossed the flyer aside and withdrew her scroll.

Her thumbs moved at an unmatched pace as she searched for the _TwoSouls_ website and for any and all details regarding the event. Her silver eyes flicked side to side as she skimmed through paragraph after paragraph of information in an effort to see if there was anything that the flyer hadn't talked about, but the information of the event was primarily focused on events that would allow a person more opportunities to meet their soulmate as opposed to focusing too much on Weiss's performance.

_"Well, that's great and all, but what if Weiss was my soulmate? Huh? What then TwoSouls!"_

It was mostly a sarcastic thought that flowed through her mind, Ruby wondering to herself if Weiss would be both performing at and _attending_ the _TwoSouls_ event. If she was roaming the hall in an effort to meet people as well, maybe that would give Ruby a chance to talk to her, and she found that one particular thought was still lingering in her mind.

_"No..."_

As she stared at an image of Weiss, a photo that had been taken during one of her earlier performances, a beautiful and sparkling snowy blue dress accentuating her flawless figure, Ruby couldn't help but feel her heart beat a little faster. Her finger reached out, touching the screen as she gently traced the edge of the photo, the thought repeating itself in her mind.

_"What if Weiss is my soulmate?"_


	5. Going to Atlas

“Don’t you see Ilia? This is basically the biggest sign I’m ever going to get! Why can’t you just be happy for me?”

The notification that had appeared to Blake the previous night had been an invitation to attend a charity gala in Atlas sponsored by the Schnee Dust Company and run by  _ TwoSouls _ . The purpose of the event would be to provide games, entertainment, gifts, and anything else one could dream of spending lien on in order to fund both the website and similar future events. Furthermore, this year's charity would have a greater emphasis on supporting the mental health of those who may not respond well to the bond as they develop, something both Ilia and Blake had personally witnessed.

“Because Blake! Because you were  _ this _ close to letting go of the whole thing,  _ this close! _ Now you suddenly plan on going all the way to  _ Atlas _ in hopes to find your one in a million soulmate who, let’s face it, probably won’t even be at some stupid anti-faunus event like that!” Ilia hadn’t taken the news particularly well. Their conversation the previous day had ended with Blake all but promising to delete her account and give some thought to settling down with Ilia to find her own happiness in another. With this change of heart suddenly sprung on Ilia so early in the morning, it was difficult for her to hide her frustrations and anger.

“Nobody said anything about an anti-faunus event, why are you even trying to bring that up? It’s a charity event to help those who suffer from negative effects of their bonds that doubles as a place where you could possibly meet your soulmate! How can you possibly be twisting it into something so negative!?” Blake’s rising frustrations with Ilia were spoken aloud as well, the two’s voices growing by the second while people began to give the pair sideways looks as they carried out their argument in the center of town.

“It’s being hosted by the  _ Schnee Dust Company _ Blake. Schnees are about as anti faunus as it gets, and in Atlas, that’s saying something.” Ilia sneered, crossing her arms and shaking her head as she turned from Blake. “Whatever. If you want to go off and ruin your future by clinging so desperately to this childish dream, be my guest.”

“Ilia, wait.” Before Ilia could get the chance to walk away Blake reached out a hand to grab her shoulder in the same way she'd grabbed hers the day before. “Why are you so hell bent on rejecting the bond and the idea of a soulmate? If you’re trying to compare me to Adam, and say that I’m entirely too obsessed, then you’re acting like the exact opposite. How can  _ you _ not care  _ at all _ ?”

There was a lengthy pause, a silence falling between them as the eyes looking their way returned to their business. Ilia hadn’t tried to pull away, she hadn’t even tried to shrug off Blake’s hand, and for a few moments she just seemed to be lost in thought.

“I did care Blake, for a while. I felt through the bond  _ so _ much, and I dreamed of knowing who was on the other side of all those feelings. There were mixtures of admiration and anxiety, freedoms and fears, the entire range of emotions coming through for so long that it tempted me like so many others to go searching.” Although she turned back to face Blake with her body, Ilia didn’t meet her eyes, and instead looked out towards the sea beyond the edge of the docks. “Even to this day there’s this confidence in whoever is on the other side, they feel like someone in a position of authority maybe, someone that looks to help people. They’re the type of person I wouldn’t want to let down, and I don’t want to force them to suffer by sending my negativity through the bond, but at the same time I don’t want to end up like Adam where my burning passion drives them to…something. I’ve accepted that I’m never going to find them, and I know that the best I can do for them wherever they are is find my own happiness here in Menagerie, hopefully with you.”

Ilia's cheeks had blushed, her soft blue-gray eyes slowly moving to Blake as she gave an awkward smile towards her friend. Blake was stunned by the confession that Ilia cared far more than she'd been giving her credit for. Giving how hard she'd been trying to tear Blake away from her own bond and soulmate, the revelation was particularly hard to process. However, after a pause, Blake found herself suddenly struck by a rush of inspiration.

“Come with me.” Quickly, Blake took Ilia’s hands into her own, a stunning and sparkling smile catching Ilia entirely by surprise.

“What?” Blinking a few times to let her mind catch up, Ilia’s smile slowly broke into a frown. “Where? To  _ Atlas!? _ ”

“Yes! Between the two of us we have some of the easiest times blending in among humans, so it’s not like we should have to deal with anyone causing trouble. Even if they do, it’s better if we’re both there to look out for one another right?” Still beaming, her mind thinking out every potential argument both for and against the two going together, Blake had essentially already made up her mind that Ilia would accompany her on her journey.

“I mean, I guess? It’s still insane, you know that right? We’d  _ literally _ be going to the opposite end of the planet in hopes to find your soulmate who-”

“Who might not even be there, I know.” Blake shook her head, finishing the statement Ilia had been repeating over and over for her, and moved on with her thoughts. “Listen, this is a huge chance for  _ both _ of us okay? I’m not the only one who might have a soulmate waiting for me when I get there now am I?”

“I-” Blake had cocked a brow, her suggestive smirk causing Ilia to blush briefly, speckles across her body turning a pink to match that of her cheeks. The chameleon faunus looked like she was still on the fence, and Blake decided to pull out her last resort.

“I’ll cut you a deal too. You come with me, travel across all of Remnant by my side to this charity gala, and we both put in  _ real _ effort to find our soulmates while we’re there. If  _ neither _ of us finds them while we’re gone, I promise you that when we get back to Menagerie I’ll delete my profile and take you out on a date. How does that sound?” There was a tinge of guilt within Blake tied to the fact that she knew this offer was practically a guarantee for Ilia’s cooperation. Still, this was the only chance she was going to get to be able to try and find her soulmate beyond the edges of this island, and admittedly having Ilia by her side would be a huge relief in terms of her own safety.

“That’s dirty and you know it.” Pouting slightly, it was as if Ilia had read Blake’s mind, though her hands clenched tighter on Blake’s as she gazed into her eyes.

“And?” Still with a raised brow, Blake could see the pout fade slightly as Ilia couldn’t help but smile.

“You win.” Rolling her own eyes, Ilia broke into a full grin as Blake eagerly pulled her into a hug.

“You’re the best Ilia, I can never thank you enough for this.” Pulling away, Blake was almost tempted to plant the biggest kiss she could on the girl’s cheek, but with their current objective she realized how easily such an action could be misconstrued. Instead, unsure of what else to do, Blake pulled Ilia into another tight embrace.

“Yeah well…” This time it was Ilia pulling away, stepping far enough from Blake where she wouldn’t be ambushed with yet another hug. “When we get back I get to choose where you’re taking me to dinner okay?”

“If we both strike out, I’ll take you anywhere you want.” Nodding in agreement, Blake put her hands behind her back, squeezing them tight in order to contain her giddiness.

“Deal.”

\---

“You excited sis? You haven’t stopped fidgeting since we got on the ship.”

Beyond the window where clouds dominated their vision, Yang Xiao Long and her sister Ruby Rose found themselves aboard a passenger airship on its way to Atlas, halfway across the world. The stabilizing effects of gravity dust enabled them to walk freely around the ship amongst the other passengers, and it seemed they weren’t the only ones on their way to the  _ TwoSouls _ event. All around them excited voices talked about romance, a few eager simply to hear Weiss’s performance live and in person. However, as many strong emotions as there were that surrounded them, none compared to the anxiety levels of Ruby as she paced relentlessly between a set of windows at the edge of the ship.

“I know, it’s just… If I confess something to you can you promise you won’t tease me about it?” The flyer Taiyang had provided the girls was clenched tightly in Ruby’s hands, though it had been considerably worn down and crumpled by her grip over the course of the past few days.

“I can only promise to try…” Yang could already sense whatever Ruby was about to tell her would be something she never let her live down, though her lilac eyes looked over her fidgety sister with curiosity. In all the time since Ruby had been born, Yang had never seen something eat at her younger sister this much.

“It’s about my soulmate…” As her silver eyes flicked around the ship, Ruby lowered her voice to a whisper, standing on the tips of her toes to try and keep as quiet as possible. “I... I think Weiss Schnee might be my soulmate.”

Yang blinked.

She blinked again.

As Ruby lowered herself down, taking a nervous step back from her flabbergasted sister, she could immediately tell her confession had been a mistake.

“Weiss Schnee!?” In her shock Yang had forgotten to quiet her voice, and instead had practically shouted the celebrity’s name to the entire cabin. The conversation around them seemed to ceased for a moment, a few heads look around curiously to see if she was somehow on the ship, before a nervous wave from Yang sent everyone back to their own discussions. “Weiss Schnee? You think this Weiss girl is your  _ soulmate _ ?”

With her own voice now at a whisper, Yang repeated Ruby's confession back to her, almost entirely convinced she’d heard her younger sister wrong. As Ruby's crimson hair bobbed with her nodding head, Yang’s eyes widened further as she turned to stare out the window to better process her thoughts.

“Ruby I…” Turning back for a moment, Yang seemed to lose her train of thought and turned back to the window. Once more she repeated the motion of turning to her sister, only to again look back out across the clouds, entirely unsure of what to say. “Wait a second, this has to be a prank right! Of course, that has to be-”

“Yang…” An almost pained expression stared back at the blonde before her sister’s gaze fell once more unto the flyer in her hands. 

“Oh my god you’re serious.” Moving to her sister’s side, Yang gave the girl a brief hug. “I’m sorry, I thought you were messing with me! How do you know, I mean like, you’ve never met her before right?”

“I’m not sure.” Frowning to herself, Ruby stuffed the flyer haphazardly into a pocket and withdrew her scroll. Opening a website dedicated to Weiss Schnee’s musical career, where one could see photos from her performances and order merchandise including shirts and CDs, Ruby’s thumb scrolled slowly through a selection of photos from her last performance. “I don’t know how to explain it, but when I found out she’d be performing at this  _ TwoSouls _ thingy I joked to myself about how hard it would be to meet her if a person  _ was _ her soulmate. Then I just kept thinking about it, and when I looked at these photos, I think I just kinda knew?”

“Wow.” Yang spoke both to Ruby’s odd series of events, and to the beauty of the girl in the photos. While she’d heard the name before, she’d never been particularly into classical music and as such had never gone out of her way to look up much about Weiss. However, as she stared down at an image of the pale girl with snowy hair in a beautiful flowing blue dress, she couldn’t help but think that maybe classical music wasn’t so bad.

“Yang!” Nudging her sister in the ribs, sensing her thoughts regarding  _ her _ soulmate, Ruby quickly closed out of the site. “I can’t believe you! You’ve got your own soulmate remember!” 

“I just uhh, have to make sure that my little sis’s soulmate is as good lookin as she deserves, that’s all!” Taking a step from Ruby to avoid being hit again, Yang combed nervously through her endless golden locks and began to look out at the clouds once more. “I’m actually kind’ve jealous now. At least you know who your soulmate is and even what they look like. I wonder if I’ll be able to recognize mine that fast…”

As her eyes scanned across the clouds, she did her best to imagine there were shapes and faces hidden within them. Small details seemed to appear, an eye here, maybe an ear there, but it was impossible for her mind to form a face in the lumpy layer they flew through. Even without the clouds, her thoughts were having a difficult time trying to imagine what her soulmate might look like, and instead she gave a curious look around the cabin of their airship.

“Think they might be somewhere around here?” As if reading her mind, following her older sister’s gaze, Ruby too looked out across the small crowd collected in the ship.

“Nah. If I’m anything like you I get the feeling I’ll know em when I see em.” Shrugging her shoulders as she looked away from the crowd, Yang grinned to herself. “And I can't wait to see em.”


	6. Preshow Jitters

It had been quite some time since Weiss could last remember being nervous before a show. Even in her youth, when she was putting on smaller performances for her family and tutors, she’d had enough confidence instilled within her than she never particularly worried. Perfection had been ground into her very essence for as long as she could remember, and nerves had always been considered a sign of weakness.

These memories rolled through her mind as she frowned at her reflection in the mirror. Her eyes shifted side to side, examining every inch of herself, curious as to the source of her worry. This performance, for reasons she couldn’t quite comprehend, simply felt  _ different _ than all the others. It was as if this performance had this hidden importance, a deeper meaning than just putting on a show to make money for charity and sell a few CDs on the side, but despite all her efforts she couldn’t quite figure out what this importance was.

A knock at the door pulled her from her thoughts, thoughts so deep that the sudden abrupt sound mere feet from her caused her to jump in her seat at the vanity in her personal dressing room. She’d been left alone, her father’s lengthy lectures about the importance of this performance having ended an hour prior, and all she’d been able to do in the meantime was wait. They’d prepared so early to ensure nothing went wrong, to give time to prepare for every possible contingency, that there were still a handful of hours till people would even start arriving for the event.

“Yes? You may enter.” Still frowning to herself, half expecting it to be her father returning for yet another detailed description of how she was to present herself for the course of the gala, Weiss was surprised when an unfamiliar face opened the door.

“Excuse me, Miss Schnee?” With violet eyes, pale blonde hair in a tight ponytail, and a serious expression, a woman Weiss had never met before entered her dressing room and slowly shut the door behind her. Weiss shifted somewhat uncomfortably in her seat, her brow furrowing as she gave the stranger a quick once over to try and gauge their intentions, when the woman gave a soft smile and lifted her hands slowly. “Ah, please, let me introduce myself. My name is Robyn Hill, head of the Happy Huntresses security firm. We’re overseeing the event and I wanted to take the chance to talk to you before things get too crazy around here.”

“Ah!” Recognizing the name immediately, Weiss quickly did her best to return to a more casual position in her seat. Not wanting to appear rude, she quickly nodded with a soft smile. “Right, of course! I apologize, I simply wasn’t expecting anyone for at least another few hours is all.”

“Yes well, you and your family  _ did _ arrive quite early. I’d hoped to be able to have the checkpoints already prepared before staff started arriving, but it looks like you beat us here.” With a soft chuckle, the sudden tension that had formed in the air fading just as quickly, Robyn gestured to an empty seat within the dressing room. “May I?”

“Please.” Gesturing openly for Robyn to take the seat, Weiss did her best to adjust her own to better face the woman.

“Thank you. Now then, I just wanted to gauge your plans for the evening outside of the performance you’ll be putting on at…” Robyn withdrew her scroll, eyes squinting down at the screen as she skimmed through what Weiss assumed to be the evening’s itinerary. “7 PM, nice and early.”

“I hadn’t really given it much thought frankly. Is there any particular reason I’d  _ need _ to have my mind made up so far in advance?” Raising a brow, Weiss was curious about why her location would be of concern once her job was finished, though her mind wandered to her father and she sensed he might have thoughts of his own about how her night should be spent.

“Ah, well, as the main attraction as well as a minor celebrity your security is of particular importance for the evening. I’m not sure how many public appearances you’ve made over the years, but it doesn’t take much for a celebrity without a romantic partner to be swarmed with suitors at an event like this, in particular those that would claim to be their soulmate.” Frowning slightly to herself, Robyn tucked away her scroll and sighed. “As much as I like the idea of giving everyone the opportunity to find their soulmate, events like this can draw in the more…  _ desperate _ crowd. Things can end up a little more chaotic than romantic, and so I just want to make sure you’re appropriately looked after should you decide to tour the grounds.”

“I see…” Weiss was no stranger to suitors given the consistent rate with which her father attempted to introduce them to her. Still, she hadn’t had much thought about the gala turning into a chaotic mess of desperate individuals, but now that Robyn had pointed it out she let out a sigh of her own. “Truth be told I didn’t have any particular thoughts regarding my activities after the show other than perhaps simply relaxing the evening away here. My interest in finding a soulmate is practically zero, so I don’t have much motivation to wander around looking at romance themed games or little meet and greets.”

“I suppose that’s for the best, and it certainly  _ does _ make my job much easier.” Weiss was surprised that Robyn didn’t even  _ attempt _ to encourage her at least a little to put herself out there, but if she had a history at events like this then perhaps she knew better. “Should you change your mind please notify myself or any member of my team as soon as possible and I’ll see that we set something up for you alright?”

“Of course.” The pair each stood from their seats, and Weiss offered a polite bow of her head to Robyn as she waved her farewell and exited the room, once more leaving Weiss alone with her thoughts.

During the course of the entire conversation, the tiny knot that had formed in Weiss’s stomach had only seemed to grow, and staring at herself in the mirror she wondered if deep down it had something to do with her bond. However, before her thoughts could wander any further, there was yet another knock at her door.

_ "What now…" _

“Yes?” Half expecting it to be Robyn, returning to mention a final detail regarding the security for the evening, Weiss was instead shocked when the door opened to a surprisingly familiar face.

“Hello sister, how have you been?” Winter Schnee, Weiss’s older sister, could be seen standing at attention in the doorway before her.

“Winter!” Wasting no time leaping from her seat, any and all formal training that had been worked into her very being flying out the window, Weiss covered the space between them and eagerly wrapped her arms around her elder sister. “I didn’t know you were coming, why didn’t you say anything!”

“I…” For a second Winter seemed to have entirely lost her line of thought. While her head was facing towards Weiss, her eyes had moved slowly towards the door with a strange look, before she quickly regained her composure. “I thought I’d surprise you and come see your performance in person. You’ve made quite the name for yourself since I left, and I’m happy to see it as a name that exists beyond the dust company.”

“Yes well, father  _ does _ tend to try and manage me like I’m one of his employees all the same.” The pair shared a mutual chuckle regarding their overbearing father, before Weiss quickly did her best to welcome Winter inside to share in a more lengthy conversation. “Come, sit! I have so much to tell you, and I’d love to hear about how your time has been spent of late!”

“Ah-” Again, Winter’s mind seemed to strangely be anywhere but there. Weiss paused, her enthusiasm replaced with a slight hint of concern.

“Is everything okay?” Approaching her sister, seeing her snap from whatever trance seemed to repeatedly be taking hold, Weiss took Winter’s hand in her own and gave a gentle squeeze.

“Yes, my apologies. You’re right, it has been far too long since we last spoke face to face and I’m quite eager to hear about the life you’ve lived while I’ve been away.” Turning her focus fully on Weiss, the pair sat to begin a rather lengthy conversation regarding their many years apart.

\---

“Do we  _ seriously _ have to wear these!? I know it’s supposed to be some fancy pants event, but honestly!”

“Oh come on, it isn’t  _ that _ bad. Besides, what are you gonna do, walk around in just stockings all night?”

“Better than breaking my, OH COME ON!”

Yang and Ruby had arrived in Atlas without issue, their ship docking near a string of hotels offering special rates for anyone that would be attending the  _ TwoSouls _ event. Only staying one night, and with plenty of lien provided by their overly enthusiastic father in hopes they’d enjoy their time, the pair had decided that rather than spend the majority of their day stuffed away in a tiny room that they’d tour the grounds in the short time before Weiss’s performance was meant to happen. Ruby, unfortunately, was experiencing a great deal of difficulty with moving around in the attire they’d chosen to arrive in.

Ritzy events had never been common in their family, outside of school dances or occasionally attending weddings, so moving around in dress clothes - and especially heels - wasn’t a well practiced talent for either of them. While Yang was managing to have an easier time, less prone to losing her balance with her slightly shorter heels, it was apparent as they made their way around the event that they may have slightly overdressed. Yang’s halter dress, golden as her hair and sparkling in the evening light of the moon, combined with Ruby’s own short dark red dress with a black sash at the waist, made the pair stand out around the more moderate dress wear of those around them.

“Ruby, you’ve  _ got _ to get used to these eventually. You wouldn’t want to make a bad impression on you  _ soulmate _ now would you?” Chuckling as her sister nearly toppled over with a misplaced step, Yang didn’t help matters by giving her a gentle elbow nudge.

“I’m trying okay! Trust me, the last thing I want to do is say  _ ‘Hi, I’m Ruby, I think I’m your soulmate!’  _ and then break an ankle!” Pouting slightly, a mixture of frustrations directed at both her sister and herself, Ruby eventually managed a few more steps as she calmed down. “I just want to get through this okay? I can’t tell if I’m feeling more excited or more nauseous at this point…”

“Well, the best thing you can do at this point is relax, for _both_ your sakes. If Weiss Schnee really is your soulmate don’t you think the last thing she’d need from the bond is all these nerves before going on stage?” With a sympathetic look to Ruby, Yang gave her a soft smile and a pat on the head. “Don’t worry yourself so much okay? When the moment comes I’m sure you’ll both hit it off no problem, it’s how the whole soulmate thing is supposed to work! At least, I think it is.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. It’s just, the more pressure I feel  _ not _ to send a bunch of anxiety through the bond the more anxiety I feel! It’s like some twisted game of ping pong but the ball just keeps getting bigger with every hit!” In their time roaming the ground, the pair had inadvertently made it to the entrance of the building where the opening ceremonies were set to occur. Even with a little over an hour to go, they could see the seats inside were already beginning to fill rather quickly, and those spots closest to the stage had almost entirely been claimed. With Ruby anxiously squirming at her side, Yang debated looking around for any early games that may have been set up to distract her while they waited, when another, better idea came to mind.

“Here, come with me.” Grabbing Ruby by the arm, Yang wasted no time tearing through the indoor seating, the pair quickly dashed past several other individuals deciding where to sit as they made their way towards the seating closest to the stage.

“Wha, what are you doing! The show isn’t for like another hour Yang, I can’t sit still that long, I’ll go crazy!” Objecting to finding their seats so soon, especially after Yang tried to convince her  _ not _ to be a ball of anxiety, Ruby was hoping that the pair would find something to distract her while they passed the time. With the amount of games and activities being set up, she wondered if they’d be able to preview or test one while they waited, but instead she was being forced into a seat where she’d have to sit still and remain calm for  _ far _ longer than she felt she could manage in that moment.

“Trust me, you’ll thank me later.” Confidently smirking as she pulled Ruby down the aisle of the fourth row out, doing her best to find an open pair of seats as close to the middle as possible, Yang forcefully pulled her sister down into position when she found a suitable location.

“ _ Why _ would I thank you! This is only making me feel  _ more _ nervous!” Already fidgeting, her eyes looking around at the ever growing mass of people on all sides, Ruby felt like the world was suddenly closing in all around her.

“If we arrive here any later, where do you think we’ll end up sitting? All the way in the back, that’s where!” Gesturing towards the seating at the back of the auditorium, Yang turned back to Ruby and then gestured to the stage. “Think about it. Showing up early and getting these seats will put you front and center for your one and only.”

With a sly wink, Yang could see that her idea had immediately had a calming effect on Ruby.

“She’ll be… so close.” Ruby felt her breath leave her, the realization that in less than an hour she’d be practically face to face with her soulmate.

“Yup, and that’s not even the best part.” Yang gestured to either side of them, pointing down the lengthy rows of seating that stretched in both directions. “I managed to snag us seats basically dead center to the stage, and guess where she’ll  _ probably _ be looking out at most of the show?”

Ruby’s eyes fixated on the stage, finding the center point and following it out into the crowd. As her eyes slowly scanned over the tops of heads in front of her, she slowly began looking down at herself.

“She’ll… be looking right at me.”

Ruby’s heart fluttered, a wave of calm washing away all of her anxieties at once. Suddenly, despite the growing crowd around her, she felt at peace.

“So, still wanna go look for games to play?” Smugly, Yang asked the question despite already knowing the answer.

“No… I can do this. I can wait. What’s another hour, right?” Ruby looked to Yang, a hopeful and thankful smile crossing her face, and she leaned over to give an awkward sideways hug to her elder sister. “Thanks Yang, you’re the best.”

“Yeah well, that might be true but we still gotta find a way to see her after the show right? Hard part isn’t done yet, but I’d say we’re making pretty good progress.” Chuckling to herself, seeing Ruby already gazing patiently back at the stage and lost in thoughts of her own, Yang’s smile faded slightly as she turned her head to gaze across the crowd around them. 

While she was more than happy to aid Ruby in her quest to meet her soulmate, finding her own was proving to be a different matter entirely. There was a mixture of excitement and nerves mixing within her own body as well, and it was difficult to tell how much was her own and how much was being sent through the bond. Given how immediately Ruby had seemed to recognize her soulmate from a mere photo, she’d hoped that in gazing out across the sea of faces around them one of them might stick out, but was finding no such luck.

_"My feelings in the bond changed the same day I saw that flyer, so it can’t have been a total coincidence right?_ _They have to be here, I just know it…"_

Each lost in their own thoughts, dreams and fantasies floating through their heads as each worried about the possibility of finding their soulmate that very night, the sisters sat in silence as the minutes ticked by and the seats around them filled to capacity.

_ “Ladies and Gentlemen…” _

With the hour passed, the auditorium booming with conversation, the speaker system began to kick in and a hush fell over the crowd.

_ “Welcome to the annual TwoSouls Charity Gala! This year's event is sponsored by the Schnee Dust Company, but more about the proceeds later! First, please give a warm welcome to our star for the evening, Weiss Schnee!” _

As the announcement faded out, not a single sound could be heard amongst the few hundred people gathered before the stage as the lights dimmed and the curtains opened to the crowd. Within the darkness, a silhouette could be seen standing before a microphone, a large piano just beyond her, and a small accompanying operatic section just beyond that. Moments later, a single beam of light flashed down on the star of the evening, and as the stage was slowly illuminated the sound of music began to fill the air. Standing before the crowd, a snowy and sparkling blue dress that reached to her heels, Weiss slowly opened her pale blue eyes as she looked out amongst the sea of faces obscured in darkness.

_ “Mirror…” _

Weiss’s voice slowly joined the sound of piano and violin, the piece calm and soothing to all that could hear it. Her arms stretched out, emphasizing each lyric as the pace of the song slowly increased, instrument after instrument joining in to enhance the performance further and further, but to one member of the audience there was only one sound that mattered.

Ruby’s mind was focused solely on Weiss, her eyes fixated on the beauty before her. Every aspect of her, from her voice to her looks, was far beyond anything she could have ever dreamed of. Despite the photos, despite months of listening to recordings of her performances, nothing could have prepared her for the rush of emotions she felt seeing her in person for the first time. In that instant she knew, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that her instincts had been right the whole time.

“ _ Weiss Schnee really is my soulmate…” _


	7. The Lengths We Go For Love

Panting, arms on their thighs as they tried to catch their breath, Ilia and Blake had just barely made it through the gates of the  _ TwoSouls _ fairgrounds deep within the territory of Atlas after what felt like days of nonstop travel. Standing, wiping sweat from their brow, they couldn’t help but find themselves grinning outwardly at the beauty of their surroundings.  All around them pairs could be seen, playing carnival games, enjoying romantic dinners, or simply sitting on benches beneath the light of the broken moon sharing in conversation. Love was all around, and judging by the number of couples, soulmates were being discovered left right and center.

“Glad I talked you into coming?” Between breaths, a smug Blake Belladonna turned to her companion with a raised brow. It was impossible to deny that love was in the air, and even someone like Ilia who spent so much of her time rejecting her bond and denying the drive to find her soulmate would have a difficult time ruining the moment.

“Yeah well, don’t get  _ too _ ahead of yourself. We almost didn’t make it _at all,_ and just because all these people lucked out doesn’t mean we will.” With steadying and shaky breaths of her own, Ilia did her best to try and remain realistic about their odds, but a smile was still spread across her face all the same.

“I wonder if we missed the opening event. I'd hazard a guess that with so many people already out and about we probably did.” Frowning to herself, Blake could see a still emptying tent in the distance where the crowd seemed to be funneling from. It was a little frustrating they’d arrived so late into the event, but given their last second departure from Menagerie, which lacked any airfields of its own, it was a miracle they’d made it at all.

“Well, we’re here now, and there’s still a few hours left in the event. That opening speech was probably just a big crowd listening to a live advertisement for some girl’s music anyways, so I’m kinda glad we missed it.” Eyeing the flood of people, nearly every single one human that she could tell, Ilia suddenly felt rather exposed and vulnerable so far from home. It was taking nearly all of her willpower to keep her faunus traits from showing, and they’d been in such a hurry to book a hotel and  _ sprint _ to the event there hadn’t really been much time to think at all. Everything that had gotten them to this point had been such a blur that now that there was time to breath she found the very act difficult.

“Hey, we’re okay.” Sensing the panic slowly overcoming her companion, Blake took Ilia’s hands in her own, meeting the girl’s eyes and slowly taking calming breaths for the both of them. “We’re going to get through this, have a great time, and maybe even fall in love. Remember why we’re here Ilia; one way or another we go home with love in our hearts.”

The soft smile Blake gave her melted away Ilia’s anxiety attack, and she gave a slow nod back as she relaxed her breathing and managed to calm down. Despite being surrounded by humans, in that moment it felt like it was just the two of them.

“You’re right. We’re here, so why not have a little fun.” Chuckling softly, pursing her lips as she pulled her hands from Blake’s, Ilia looked around nervously at the surrounding fairgrounds for any sign of where they should go now they'd finally arrived. “So should  _ we _ do something, or just like, walk around and hope we just magically bump into someone?”

Despite being surrounded by entertainment and games, the pair realized they didn’t quite know what to do with themselves. Nearly everything in their immediate vicinity seemed designed for couples that had already found one another, but sitting down to partake in something romantic together would defeat the purpose of having traveled all this way.

“I’m not really sure. From what I read there’s supposed to be speed dating events or little meet and greets where you fill out cards _somewhere_ around here.” Standing on her tiptoes, doing her best to glance over the heads of the crowd for any sign of where these events were happening, Blake could see a small line of people gathering on the opposite side of the grounds. “There’s a bunch of people over there, maybe that’s where we fill out some stuff to get us started?”

Doing her best to follow Blake’s vision, the sea of people making it difficult to tell where she was indicating, Ilia shrugged her shoulders and gestured for Blake to lead the way.

“I guess that’s as good a place to start as any. Lead on.” Taking a step towards Blake, Ilia trailed closely behind her flowing raven hair as they made their way through the crowd of people, doing her best to avoid losing sight of Blake for more than a second.

“Hey, I said beat it!”

A loud and rather aggressive voice could suddenly be heard in the direction the two were heading, and sensing that something was about to happen they picked up the pace. Breaking from the sea of people still exiting the tent, Blake had found the group she'd spotted earlier, a length of individuals standing in a line with flowers and various candies in hand. At the front of the line, another small crowd had formed, a ring of people watching whatever spectacle was going on.

“No! I said  _ you _ need to  _ move _ ! Ruby, go!”

Another loud voice, somehow even more aggressive than the first, was shouting over the murmurs of the crowd. There was a sudden gasp as the crowd seemed to scoot back from whatever was happening as a pair of audible grunts made its way into the air.

“Okay!”

“Hey, get back here  _ now _ !”

Another pair of voices, one sounding much younger than the others, the second carrying equal aggression and authority to the first, caused the crowd to back up even further.

From where they were standing, Blake and Ilia couldn’t quite see what was happening beyond the voices and reaction of the crowd.

“What do you think is…” Turning to Blake, hoping the slightly taller girl might be able to give her a play by play, Ilia could see that her companion was frozen on the spot. “Blake…?”

“Ilia… hold this…” Without turning, Blake tore off her outer jacket and threw it into Ilia’s arms. The chameleon faunus was left shocked, quickly trying to figure out what to do with the jacket, when Blake began to blaze her way through the crowd. Her fists were clenched, a strange fierceness in her eyes, and seconds later she’d disappeared from Ilia’s vision.

\---

“So, how’d it go sis?”

Having made their way from the opening ceremonies, Ruby having been dead quiet the entire time, Yang finally decided to break her younger sister from the trance that had overtaken her.

“It… was amazing.” Ruby was practically drooling, her eyes somewhat glossy as her mind played over and over the memories it had just forced. Seeing Weiss,  _ hearing _ her in person, had entirely overwhelmed Ruby’s senses. It was like nothing she’d ever felt before, her heart pounding eagerly in her chest, and an indescribably warmth filling her with a seemingly infinite supply of love and joy.

“That good huh? So guess you were right, that Weiss girl’s your soulmate huh?” Chuckling at the daze Ruby was in, the girl suddenly having  _ no _ issues with moving in heels, Yang pursed her lips as she realized how difficult their next hour was about to get. “Now the real question: how do we get you two to meet?”

“I mean, can’t I just talk to someone about getting back stage? Maybe she’s signing merchandise or something!” Ruby snapped to, her mind suddenly working on what to do next as well.

“Didn’t you try and check that already? I don’t think the website said anything about that, and they only mentioned sales after her performance.” Yang intertwined her fingers behind her head, staring around the grounds lost in thought about how they might be able to track down Weiss, when she saw a pair of women standing at the entrance to what she assumed to be a door to the backstage area. “What if we asked about it? I’m sure security might know  _ something _ that can help us.”

“Yeah! If anyone knows they will!” With a pep in her step, Ruby eagerly followed beside Yang as the pair approached what they assumed to be a pair of talking security guards.

“I was just thinking, what are the  _ odds _ that I find them? I wasn’t even her for the event, just my-” Standing almost at attention, as if they might be some sort of military figure, a woman with short snowy hair in a tight ponytail and pale blue eyes was smiling with the tiniest hint of blush to the woman beside her. The sister’s were taken aback, the woman practically the spitting image of a slightly taller Weiss, when Yang coughed in her hand to get the pair’s attention.

“Ah, excuse me, could you help us?” The pair grinned, doing their best to put on as sweet an expression as possible, as they looked up to the white haired woman.

“Oh no, sorry, I don’t work here.” Waving the two off, she instead gestured to the woman beside her, with violet eyes and her own light blonde hair in a similarly tight ponytail.

“Yeah? What can I do for you?” The smile the blonde woman had been wearing during her conversation with the snowy haired woman faded almost instantly. Crossing her arms, she stared between them and cocked a brow.

“We were wondering if you knew whether Weiss was doing any meet and greets or signings or anything tonight. My sister here is a  _ huge _ fan and it would absolutely make her night if she could get so much as a signature!” Gesturing to the eagerly hopping Ruby beside her, Yang looked between the two women in hopes they’d be able to point them in the right direction.

“No can do, sorry. Weiss isn’t seeing anybody tonight, so scram.” Brushing them off immediately, Yang’s eyes went wide at how rudely they’d been dismissed. Beside her, Ruby all but deflated, her hopeful expression falling to one of worry.

“Weiss isn’t seeing  _ anybody _ you say?” Deciding that at this point there wouldn’t be any harm in trying to play the card, Yang again gestured to her younger sister with a dramatic wave of her arms. “Not even her  _ soulmate!? _ ”

There was a small stint of silence as both the women gave Ruby a once over, before the two pursed their lips to better suppress the rising laughter within each of them.

“This little pipsqueak here is supposed to be the soulmate of  _ Weiss Schnee _ ? Now I’ve heard it all. Listen, if she’s really Weiss’s soulmate, then she can wait over there with the rest of them.” Jerking her thumb to the side, Yang and Ruby looked to see a lengthy line of individuals, each holding enormous bouquets of flowers and expensive boxes of chocolates at their sides. Each looked confident, if not smug, as they waited in a line that would never move.

“But I am! I know I am! If you just let me see her for just a second she can-!” Ruby pouted, stomping her foot and breaking her heel. Rolling her eyes in a huff, she kicked the shoes to the side and glared up at the two women. “Please, I’m telling you!”

“Trust me kid, I’ve heard all the lines, all the tales and excuses. Everyone has a story, everyone had this  _ gut feeling _ the first time they saw or heard her, but you can see what would happen if I just let every no name off the street claiming to be Weiss’s soulmate back to see her. Now beat it, there’s plenty of ways to meet your  _ actual _ soulmate all over the place, so why don’t you go do something else instead of wasting your entire night trying to get past here.” At this point, the blonde turned her head from the two, focusing her attention back on the snowy haired woman beside her with a smile coming back across her face.

“ _ Trying _ ? By the end of the night, we  _ will _ be past this door.” Smirking up at the two, Yang kicked aside her own heels, and started to crack her knuckles. “Now, we tried playing nice, but if you two don’t move aside and let my sister back there to meet her soulmate,  _ I’ll move you myself _ .”

“Hey, I said beat it!” The blonde’s voice raised from the slightly annoyed but polite tones they’d been using prior. At Yang’s formation of a pair of fists, both women immediately moved from their otherwise relaxed positions and gave her a concerned once over.

“No! I said  _ you _ need to  _ move _ !” Before either of the women could take the chance to call over further security or even take the first move, Yang had already taken the initiative. She knew in her mind that this would likely end up a losing battle in no time at all, given she was taking on a security guard and maybe even a member of the military, but they’d come all this way for her sister to meet her soulmate and they weren’t going to be stopped here. Knowing that the snowy haired woman was likely to be the bigger threat, Yang had used her initial move to shove her with as much force as she could muster, catching her off guard enough that she stumbled back and fell into the wall. In the next instant, she was essentially tackling the other woman to the ground.

“Ruby, go!”

“Okay!” Caught up entirely in the panic of the moment, Ruby looked at the door which was suddenly unprotected. The snowy woman had been shoved off to the left, the blonde tackled by Yang to the right, and taking the opening her sister had made Ruby rushed forward and burst through the door into the halls of a building that would ideally take her back stage.

“Hey, get back here  _ now! _ ” As the snowy haired woman pushed off from the wall, regaining her footing and looking from the blonde to the door swinging closed, she decided that she best take the initiative and go to protect her own sister.

However, as Winter Schnee turned from Robyn in preparation to bolt after the girl that had broken past them, she suddenly felt a force slam into her back. Before she'd even gotten the chance to open the door and begin pursuit her entire body had been shoved forward into the smooth metal surface, the wind briefly being knocked from her by an unknown source.

“Who in the-” Wheezing out her confusion, Winter turned her head enough to see Robyn still on the ground fighting with the fiery blonde that had initiated the altercation. If it wasn’t the blonde girl that was assaulting her, then who…

Yang looked away from Robyn, away from the security guard she’d tackled to the ground without hesitation, and towards the woman she was worried would quickly put a stop to her sister’s journey. Instead, she was pleasantly surprised to see someone else had taken care of the woman for her, and then their eyes met.

Golden eyes stared back at lilac, and for the two of them time seemed to freeze. For Yang, it felt exactly as Ruby had described it days prior. In that moment, beyond any reasonable doubt, she knew. This mysterious girl that had come to her rescue from nowhere was her one and only soulmate.

The moment, as infinite as it felt between them, was over in a flash. The brief and overwhelming emotions that had flowed into Yang and Blake were enough of a distraction that they lost the upper hand they’d held in the fight, and very quickly the two found themselves on opposite ends of the brawl.

Winter, wasting no time, slid from Blake’s pin to the door and swept the girl’s legs from beneath her. Slamming the faunus girl into the ground, this time knocking the wind from Blake, Winter grumbled to herself as she forced Blake's hands behind her back and pinned her down with a knee.

Robyn, in a similar fashion, had managed to free herself enough from Yang’s grapple to instead pin Yang to the ground, quickly drawing out two pairs of cuffs from a pouch at her waist and tossing one to Winter.

“Alright, you guys are in some _ serious _ trouble, you know that?” Robyn looked to Winter, the other woman having cuffed her assailant, and the pair exchanged a nod. Not wasting any more time, Winter yanked open the door and she quickly began to sprint down the halls to chase after Ruby, wherever she had gone.

Still both on the ground, neither putting up even the smallest hint of a fight now that Yang’s mission had been accomplished, both Yang and Blake simply stared at one another with a smile. As much pain had been inflicted with their rather forceful arrests, the overwhelming emotions that came with meeting one’s soulmate face to face had entirely numbed it all. As the sound of a radio crackled above them, Robyn calling in backup to help deal with the two of them, all they could do was continue to gaze into one another’s eyes. Slowly, each gave a nod to the other.

_ “Hey.” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to take a moment here to credit this prompt to Bomberman1117, a friend on a RWBY discord server. They put the initial idea of a soulmate AU out there and the two of us got to talking at length about some ideas! Their version is titled "Soul Desire" and the two will have some similar scenes given how much we talked about, but we each took our favorite parts and ran with it! Anyways, check theirs out too!


	8. Passing an Unpassable Test

_ “Why was that so… exhilarating?” _

Weiss hadn’t stopped smiling since the minute she’d stepped on stage. She’d managed to compose herself during the performance, which in itself didn’t feel particularly special, but walking through the halls after the applause had long died down she found herself undeniably giddy.

The memory of not long ago, shortly before she’d taken the stage, the feeling that this performance was somehow  _ special _ still lingered in her thoughts. Weiss had thought that, once she’d finished her song and departed the stage, the feeling would then simply go away on its own. Instead, all through the performance and even now, alone in her dressing room, the feelings somehow felt stronger than ever. Tilting her head, gazing at her own reflection in the mirror of her vanity, Weiss wondered what it was that was bringing her such joy.

Until the joy began to rapidly fade, replaced with a new emotion she wasn’t particularly fond of.

Her heart began to race, pounding hard in her chest in a mixture of panic and desperation. She clutched it tight, her face contorting slightly as confusion and worry took hold. Then she heard it…

In the halls beyond her dressing room she could hear shouting, the sound of doors opening and slamming in quick succession, and with each slam the sound drew ever closer.

Standing from her seat, standing behind the chair and gripping tightly at the back, she rolled her eyes at herself.

_ “What, am I going to hit someone over the head with a chair?” _

Glancing around, doing her best to remain level headed as the sounds drew closer, Weiss looked for anything she could potentially use to defend herself. By the sound of it someone had busted past security, the shouts of pursuit a short distance from whoever was tearing through the doors backstage. If she’d had to guess, the slamming indicated the selection of a wrong door, that whoever the culprit was had to be searching for something they hadn’t yet found.

_ “Me…” _

With how quickly the sounds were approaching, it didn’t sound like she had much time, and she hesitated briefly in wonder if perhaps she’d be better off hiding instead of trying to fight. If they were going through rooms so quickly, then maybe they weren’t spending much time looking, and if she was out of sight…

In her lingering thoughts of what to do Weiss suddenly realized it was too late.

The door slammed open, the grip on the back of her chair tightening further as she realized that weaponizing it might be the only option available to her, when instead she was overwhelmed with a sudden sense of calm as the intruder appeared before her.

_ "A _ _girl?"_

Black hair tipped with crimson, a silver eyed girl only a few years younger than her burst into the dressing room and immediately froze upon making eye contact with Weiss. The smile that Weiss had been wearing for the past several minutes returned instantly, and despite the myriad of concerning thoughts that had filled her mind moments ago, Weiss was filled only with relief.

“WEISS!”

From beyond the girl, a familiar voice shouted in anger and worry, causing the younger girl before her to yelp. Jumping slightly in shock, the hypnosis that had overcome the pair breaking instantly, the girl’s eyes moved from Weiss to the room as she looked for a place to hide.

“Here.” Speaking loudly, both to the voice of her elder sister and to the girl before her, Weiss gestured to her side with a soft smile.

“Weiss!” Panting, Winter appeared in the doorway, her eyes flicking from her sister to the intruder that was now standing beside her. Eyes narrow, she took an enraged step towards the girl. “YOU! You get away from her right-”

“Stop.” Winter’s rage was replaced with shock as her younger sister lifted a hand and shook her head.

“Weiss, this girl is an intruder. What I presume to be her sister attacked both myself  _ and _ a security officer before-” Gesturing towards the young girl who had slowly edged her way behind Weiss in a panic, Winter took another step towards the pair and was again met with a shake of Weiss’s head.

“This  _ intruder _ is very likely my soulmate, and as such I would ask that you offer some courtesy and allow her a moment to compose herself.” With a sympathetic look over her shoulder, Weiss did her best to pull the girl to the forefront.

“Your…” Winter blinked, disbelief in what Weiss was telling her causing her to stutter. “You  _ can’t _ be serious.  _ This _ is your soulmate?”

“Well…” Chuckling to herself, Weiss shrugged slowly, looking across the young girl with an irrepressible smile. “I suppose there _is_ the test I’ve given to every suitor prior. Perhaps I administer it to confirm her identity once and for all?”

“Test!?” Speaking her first words since she’d found Weiss, the girl squeaked out her concerns and looked to Weiss with panic. She’d assumed that in simply meeting her she’d have felt all the same feelings that _she_ had and the rest would be history. “Nobody told me there’d be a test!”

“Ah yes, Father mentioned you often provide your suitors a test. From my understanding not a single one had ever come close to passing.” Somewhat more confident, though slightly frustrated that Weiss would even bother testing this absolute buffoon that had barged their way into her room, Winter relaxed her stance somewhat. “Very well, give your silly test so that we might remove this intruder from the grounds.”

“Wait, can I at least know the subject!? It’s not geography is it!? Or Math?” Frantically, the girl looked to Weiss in hopes she could at least get a hint regarding what she was about to be tested on.

“Calm down.” Weiss chuckled at her soulmate’s rather flustered state, and with a soft and reassuring smile to the girl, Weiss turned and took a step towards her luggage in the corner of the room.

Despite the fact that much of her wardrobe had been provided on site, as well as any and all alternative needs such as food, beverage, beauty products, and so forth, Weiss had still insisted she bring some of her personal belongings with her. In particular, as she opened up her suitcase, a small pale blue box with a matching ribbon tied in a bow wrapped around it. Standing, Weiss turned to the girl, still with the same soft smile she'd been wearing. She knew, of course, that this strange girl was indeed her soulmate. All the same, she’d developed this test years prior, and it would be a shame to let it go to waste after all this time.

Winter and the girl immediately both became fixated on the box. Winter’s eyes narrowed, her brow raised in curiosity, as Weiss gently set it on her vanity beside the girl and opened it slowly. Despite doing her best to maintain a professional demeanor, even Winter stood on the tips of her toes and lifted her head in order to best see what was contained within the box.

“Cookies?”

“COOKIES!?”

The girl’s eyes lit up, and without even being offered a cookie from the box, she’d reached out and snatched one. It vanished into her mouth, not even biting a piece off, and she began to crunch gleefully away.

“Theesh ah fo me wight?” Speaking with her mouth full, a few stray crumbs spewing onto the desk of the vanity as she attempted to chew the entire cookie at once, the girl slowly began to reach out for a second before she realized that she should’ve probably asked permission first.

Winter was horrified. Seeing the ill-mannered and absolutely vile way that the young girl had immediately dug into the treats without so much as asking, going so far as to even speak with her mouth full… It was enough to confirm her suspicions, and with a smirk she took a step towards the two in order to apprehend the intruder once and for all.

“You pass.” Weiss chuckled, and while any other person acting this way before her may cause the revulsion it did in her sister, somehow Weiss only felt satisfaction. It was eccentric, somehow cute, the way she behaved. It was how she’d always imagined her soulmate to be.

“She  _ WHAT!?” _

“I what?”

Winter once again became enraged, unable to comprehend the fact that this uncultured girl was somehow the soulmate of her younger sister.

“She passed the test. Though, to be honest, I didn’t need to provide it in order to be certain. As soon as she barged in here I just… knew.” Letting out another soft laugh to herself Weiss watched as the girl immediately pulled another cookie from the box. Too confused by what had just happened to really contribute to the conversation, the girl instead looked towards Winter as she scarfed down the second cookie in hopes she wasn’t still about to be arrested.

“I-” Blinking, her lip twitching and curling in disgust, Winter eventually took a slow and steady breath in order to better calm herself. At this point the situation was entirely beyond her control. If Weiss said this…  _ girl _ was her soulmate, then there was nothing more to be done. “Very well I suppose. If I might ask then, what is the name of my sister’s  _ soulmate. _ ”

Still unable to entirely hide her frustration at how things had panned out, Winter’s eyes scanned across the girl as she struggled to get down yet a third cookie in time to answer her question.

“Ah- Ruby!” Swallowing hard, forcing down the cookie as quickly as she could, Ruby beamed first at Winter, and then to Weiss. “Ruby Rose!”

\---

The hour that passed by after finally meeting Weiss had not gone as Ruby had expected. After Weiss’s older sister Winter had finally let go of trying to arrest her, more and more people had slowly made their way to the dressing room one at a time. The first, of course, being the security guard Yang had tackled at the door.

“I told you I was her soulmate!” With her tongue out, Ruby made no attempts to remain formal with the woman that had almost kept her from her destiny. Feeling somewhat cocky with Weiss’s blessing, and to a degree her protection, Ruby couldn’t help but flaunt their status as soulmates to everyone that had doubted her.

“Listen you-” Eye twitching, overwhelming with frustration that she could no longer lay a hand on the biggest security threat she’d ever had to deal with, Robyn glared daggers to Ruby in hopes somehow she could inflict some semblance of pain with a look.

“Let it go.” With a heavy sigh of her own, Winter had placed a gentle hand on Robyn’s shoulder and shook her head in defeat. Winter of all people was struggling most with the fact that Ruby was destined to become a member of her family, and coming to terms with said fact was costing her a great deal of sanity.

“What’s all this now?” Before Robyn could pop a blood vessel at Ruby’s continued taunting, the man they’d been dreading to arrive had finally made his way to the dressing room. “Someone told me there was an emergency that needed my attention. What happened!?”

“Father!” Smiling towards Jacques Schnee, a very rare moment for the two of them, Weiss rose from her seat while taking Ruby’s hand to lift her up as well. Without hesitation Weiss then interlaced their fingers, doing her best to keep her soulmate calm and collected with a soft squeeze of her hand. “I’d like to introduce you to my soulmate, Ruby Rose.”

“Ahh, pleasure to meet your acquaintanceship, sir!” Fumbling with her introduction as she tried to use the biggest and most formal word she could muster in the moment, Ruby gave an awkward bow to Jacques Schnee, who could only scoff.

“ _ This _ is your soulmate?! How could you  _ possibly _ know that after all the training we put you through! By this point your bond, the entire soulmate thing-” His face was turning red, Jacques becoming lost for words as he gestured madly towards the couple. “Soulmate or not, I refuse to accept this  _ girl _ as a member of  _ this _ family. How many people are aware of this? We need to ensure that word doesn’t get out to the public…”

Jacques wasted no time envisioning a worst case scenario where Weiss’s fame and the family name were suddenly dragged through the mud by this disgrace of a suitress before him.

“Father, stop.” Winter stood, gazing fiercely towards Jacques as he began to pace. “This is a situation that you are simply going to have to accept, as difficult as it is.”

Winter followed Jacque’s gaze back to Ruby, neither particularly impressed with what they were witnessing, and while Winter had come to terms and accepted that this was what would be best for her sister, Jacques seemed determined to simply deny everything.

“I don’t have to  _ accept _ anything. How much lien would it take for you to go away  _ girl _ . I know the only reason you came here in the first place was the Schnee family name, and I won’t let you-” As Jacques took a step towards Ruby, sputtering as he went, Weiss placed herself suddenly between the two of them.

“Father, Ruby  _ is  _ my soulmate whether you agree with it or not. No amount of lien is going to change anything about this situation. Why can’t you just be happy for me?” Pleading with Jacques, doing her best to protect Ruby from his wrath, their conversation was interrupted with a sudden knock at the still open door.

“Great, now who could possibl-” Rolling his eyes towards his daughter, his fury continuing to grow as someone else entered behind him, Jacque’s mustache twitched as he glowered at the woman who had entered the dressing room without invitation.

“Ah, excuse me. My name is Lisa Lavender, I work for  _ TwoSouls _ in the social media and PR department. I heard a rumor that a girl claiming to be Weiss’s-” Lisa’s eyes went wide as she looked through the room, registering Ruby standing just behind Weiss. “Oh! She’s still here! Then am I to assume the rumors are true then?”

Wasting no time, the woman with pale violet hair and amber eyes withdrew her scroll and quickly began taking notes on the situation.

“No rumors are true as of yet! We’re still discussing what to do with this girl and-” Jacques, eyes wide, realized that if he didn’t control the situation as soon as possible it would escape his grasp in no time.

“This is such an excellent development. If we can get the word out that  _ Weiss Schnee _ found her soulmate here then our turnout next year could easily double, maybe even triple!” Entirely ignoring Jacques, her thumbs moving faster than her words as she stared down at the screen, Lisa looked towards Ruby and Weiss with an eager grin.

“I- Triple you say?”

Weiss shot a look at her father, seeing his eyes practically turn to lien signs at the mention of a dramatically increased turnout for future events. Judging by his reaction, sales of her CDs and merchandise had done fairly well, and the promise of an event with a far greater turnout would in turn result in more merchandise sales as well.

“Easily! Though, more importantly, I think having a family as prestigious as the Schnees being the selling point of success in the future might draw in the wealthier families as well, given the fact they tend not to show up at these sorts of things. If you’ll allow us we’ll be able to make next year’s  _ TwoSouls _ charity gala the biggest ever!” Lisa looked eagerly from Weiss to Jacques, as he seemed to be the only one actively responding to her presence.

“Excuse me.” Drawing attention from her father, Winter stood, her cheeks slightly blushed as she looked to Lisa. “Ah, would it be of any benefit if we were to mention that Weiss isn’t the _only_ Schnee to find her soulmate at this year’s gala?”

All eyes in the room went wide as Winter gave a gentle look to the woman behind her. It was clear by her surprised reaction that Robyn hadn’t been prepared to suddenly be in the spotlight, and with red in her cheeks as well she stood from her own seat to stand beside Winter.

“If that were the case…” Lisa’s own eyes went wide, her mind feeling like it was suddenly about to explode with information. “The turnout; I can’t even begin to imagine the draw. Such influential names finding success with the numbers we have now, the practically  _ guaranteed _ success we’d have if people start coming in troves. I don’t even know if we’ll be able to  _ handle _ that many people.”

“Well then, if we were to increase the budget for the Happy Huntresses to handle the crowds, and as the poster of success allow Weiss here to perform next year as well…” Winter smirked slightly to Robyn, almost seeing a similar look in her eyes as Jacques at the mention of a larger budget. Looking at her younger sister, who could only purse her lips and give a small thankful nod to Winter as she took control of the situation instead of Jacques, the entire room seemed to fall quiet.

“I mean, I’ll have to check our budget to see if we can afford that first, so I mean…” Lisa nervously bit her lip as she began muttering to herself. As overwhelming a success as she felt the next year would be at this rate, she realized that their capability to handle  _ that many _ individuals could result in the event being a dramatic failure instead.

“Well then, perhaps with a  _ charitable _ donation from the Schnee Dust Company to solve any budgeting issues, they’ll be able to put their name on the most successful charity event in history?” Choosing her words, and slightly exaggerating the situation, Winter looked to Jacques who had been in deep contemplation the entire time.

“I suppose it  _ is _ all for charity after all.” Smugly grinning, knowing that with the press his company would get from an event as large as the one being promised would easily improve company relations with all of Remnant leagues more than this one had already, Jacques played it off as if he really was being a humanitarian in that instant.

“That would solve  _ so _ many of the problems that we’d run into with a bigger event! Mr. Schnee, if you don’t mind, could you come with me to talk with some of our marketing team? If you and your family are going to be the big selling points for next year’s event I think they’d all love to get your input!” Lisa looked so excited that she might faint any minute now from overstimulation. The fact that she’d stumbled upon the key to making the biggest  _ TwoSouls _ event the company had ever seen would practically set her career on the path to success in no time flat, and she couldn’t wait to get started.

"If both my input is requested _and_ I’m to be paying for the majority of things then I _suppose_ it's only for the best that I let my voice be heard. Will you girl’s be alright without me?” Giving a feigned smile, putting on the face Weiss and Winter had often seen him wear during his important business dealings, the pair of girl’s decided to simply play along and feign smiles of their own.

“I think we’ll do just fine for now. We’ll make time for proper introductions at dinner sometime soon!” With a painfully forced wave from Winter as Jacques already began to talk himself up to Lisa as the two left, Winter let out a pained sigh, exhausted from her rather impromptu negotiations.

“Well well, that was quite the show. Bigger budget for the Happy Huntresses eh?” Patting Winter on the back with a wide grin, Robyn was impressed with how quickly Winter had turned the situation into a winning one for all parties.

“Yes well, sometimes in order to ensure everyone comes out ahead one has to play nice with Father and ensure he gets a sizable slice of the pie.” Rolling her eyes, smiling softly to Robyn, Winter took a focusing breath and returned her attention to Ruby and Weiss. “Well then, now that this  _ situation _ has been handled, will the two of you be alright if left on your own? I think it best we return to the grounds to ensure nobody else attempts to barge in here should rumors begin to spread faster than they appear to have already.”

“I think we’ll be able to handle ourselves just fine, thank you sister.” Bowing her head politely, Weiss was prepared to focus her full attention on her soulmate once they were finally given time alone, but Ruby seemed to have something else in mind as she stepped forward to stop the pair from leaving.

“Ah wait! I was um, I was wondering what happened to my sister.” Chuckling awkwardly, rubbing the back of her head as she recalled Yang’s rather aggressive treatment towards the two woman before her, Ruby watched as the smile that had appeared on Robyn’s face went flat in an instant.

“Oh. _H_ _ er _ . I had her and her little  _ friend _ detained while we figured out what to do with them. I was actually planning on calling the police as soon as we finished with  _ you _ , but given you _actually_ ended up being Weiss’s soulmate it wouldn’t look good to toss your sister in a cell now would it?” Rolling her eyes, realizing that she’d likely have to let her assailant go and accept her first failure as head of security, Robyn could only cling to the fact that somehow everything had worked out in the end.

“So you’re letting her… wait,  _ friend? _ What friend?” Filled with relief that Yang wouldn’t end up in any long term trouble on her behalf, Ruby was suddenly confused at the mention of a friend. “We came here alone.”

Winter and Robyn both frowned and with furrowed brows looked to one another. The instant Winter had regained her footing after being shoved by Yang, another girl had rushed in from seemingly nowhere to aid Yang by further delaying her pursuit of Ruby. They’d only assumed that the three of them were together given how suddenly the third girl had appeared.

“The faunus girl that attacked  _ me _ in order to help your sister after you burst backstage.” Winter stared at Ruby, finding it difficult to believe that a complete and total stranger had inadvertently helped her out of the blue.

“What faunus girl?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As a funny behind the scenes, there's a version of this chapter where Blake and Ilia hadn't yet made it to the TwoSouls event. Instead, when Yang was going to fight a singular security guard, she was going to suplex them to get Ruby past. It was then joked that wherever Blake was, she would suddenly and without knowing why suplex a random person she was walking by and panic. Most things that end up on the cutting room never make it out but I thought this was too funny a concept to not at least make note of!


	9. Meeting A Person You've Always Known

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the huge delay in the release of this chapter! Life came at me and suddenly my time to work was all but gone, but here's the newest chapter and I hope to get the rest out in a much more reasonable time frame! Hope you enjoy :)

“So.”

“So…”

Blake Belladonna and Yang Xiao Long had found themselves escorted in cuffs to a building at the edge of the  _ TwoSouls _ grounds. While they weren’t  _ officially _ under arrest as of yet, the woman that had dragged them to their current seats had heavily implied that after she assured the safety of their VIP the two of them would be having a lengthy conversation with the police. A tall dark skinned woman they’d heard go by the name ‘Joanna’ had aided in their escort, taking Blake, while the blonde named Robyn that Yang had tackled prior made sure she shoved Yang as much as possible while they were moved to a more private location.

“Sports cars?” Pursing her lips, Blake shot a sideways glance towards Yang, nervously twiddling her thumbs in her lap. Thankfully, while they were detained in this office, their cuffs had been removed and they’d been temporarily left alone. Still, as Blake looked to her soulmate, she found herself almost at a loss. She’d spent so much time envisioning the day that she’d meet them that she didn’t really know what to do. Obviously they should talk, get to know each other better given they’ll likely spend their entire futures together, but what do you say to a person you basically already know everything about?

“Ah, motorcycles actually.” Chuckling softly, sensing how the two could easily be mixed up through the bond, Yang’s cheeks blushed as she mirrored Blake’s nervous actions. “Books?”

“Mmhmm, big fan.” Nodding her head softly, still thinking over their situation, Blake realized Yang was still staring at her.

“No, I mean…  _ Books? _ ” Despite the awkwardness of the situation, Yang was waggling her eyebrows knowingly to Blake.

At first Blake didn’t understand what the blonde was getting at entirely, but the suggestive eyebrow gestures suddenly made the insinuation click in her head.

“Oh!” Blushing deeply and immediately looking to the floor, Blake gave a slow nod. “Yeah…  _ books _ .”

“Pretty spicy tastes too, judging from what I’ve felt through the bond anyways.” Giggling to herself at Blake’s reaction to her questioning, Yang started to relax somewhat. There was an underlying level of comfort and understanding between the two, something that was helping to slowly alleviate their anxiety.

“I suppose a  _ few _ of them can get a little heated.” Blake gazed back to Yang, a soft smile forming on her lips. She’d always been a little worried how her soulmate would react to some of her particular tastes, but knowing she’d been outed and Yang didn’t seem to mind, it made her feel so relaxed. With any other person she’d be a ball of anxiety, worried about how they might judge her, but with Yang - with her  _ soulmate _ \- she felt like she could share anything without fear.

“A few?” Still with a raised brow, Yang teased Blake a little more.

“Alright, maybe  _ most _ of what I read gets a little steamy, but if we want to talk about heated moments, then can I ask  _ why _ we’re even here in the first place?” Deciding she’d take a playful jab back at Yang, Blake gestured dramatically to their surroundings with a raised brow of her own.

“Oh well, I uhh…” Letting out a laugh and awkwardly rubbing the back of her head, Yang thought about how to answer the question in a believable fashion. Instead, not sure of how to delicately word things, Yang simply spit it out. “Ah, as it turns out, my little sister Ruby is _actually_ Weiss Schnee’s soulmate.”

“Really now?” Through the bond Blake felt like she could tell Yang was being honest, but the statement itself was still so unbelievable in her mind that it took her a second to fully accept it as fact.

“Yeah, crazy right? I almost didn’t believe her when she told me at first either, but she just seemed to  _ know _ , ya know?” Yang seemed to space out for a second, her eyes lost in Blake’s as she recalled the sensation from not long ago when they’d first met.

“I get what you mean.” Returning the soft grin, Blake too found herself lost once more in that magical moment, before blinking herself back to reality with a raised brow. “But that still doesn’t explain  _ why _ you just jumped security like that…”

“Well see, Ruby wanted to meet Weiss, y’know, cause they’re soulmates right? But getting backstage in the first place, that ended up being the hard part. We tried the nice approach at first, tried to be subtle and ask about signings or something where we could meet her in a public setting, and when that didn’t work I just went ahead and told them the truth!” Yang furrowed her brow, remembering how rude Robyn had been to her and her sister when they were only trying to be nice.

“And let me guess, they didn’t believe you.” Blake chuckled, already able to see where Yang’s frustrations had risen from. If she couldn’t  _ feel _ Yang’s honesty, Blake would likely have doubted the claim herself.

“Exactly! And they were so rude about it too, telling us to beat it without even giving us a chance. I mean, I guess she’s some fancy pants singer or something that security needs to protect, but they don’t have to be jerks about the whole thing.” Grumbling to herself as Blake let out another soft laugh, Yang let out a slow sigh. “So yeah, anyways, the word  _ assault _ is being thrown around a lot, but I prefer  _ distraction _ if anything. I wasn’t trying to hurt anybody, I just needed to give my sister the chance to face her destiny.”

“And the chance to face yours.” Blushing once again, Blake and Yang shared a lengthy stare. “If you hadn’t started such a commotion in the first place I don’t know if I’d ever have found you in the crowds. We could’ve spent the entire day not even twenty feet apart and never found each other.”

“Eh, twenty feet, twenty miles. We’re here now and we found each other, so that’s all that really matters in the end right?” Leaning back in her seat with a wide grin, Yang gave Blake a shrug. She wasn’t much for thinking of what could’ve been, or what may have happened. Instead, she did her best to always stay in the present, and now that they had found each other that was all she really cared about.

“Well, it worked out for  _ us _ anyways.” Despite how surprised Blake had been in actually finding her soulmate, as they had this time to think she began to worry about the friend she’d come all this way with. A friend that would no doubt be disappointed in how things had played out.

“What do you mean by-” Yang could sense some form of guilt and worry fill Blake, entering her own system through the bond, but before she could finish her sentence the pair heard a voice approaching behind.

“...and they were a faunus! Do they have any idea how hard that’s going to be to deal with!?”

\---

Blake’s ears drooped as a rather soft - yet clearly annoyed - voice was rapidly approaching their room. She immediately knew the context of whomever was speaking’s statements and anxiously turned her head from the door just as it began to swing open.

“Well, I hope the two of you are satisfied with yourselves!” To Yang’s surprise, having kept her attention on the door, a small faunus girl had slammed into the room with an irate expression. The girl was absolutely fuming, but with her small stature and adorable little sheep ears, it was almost impossible for Yang to take her rage seriously. Her brows both raised, eyes meeting the olive irises of the girl before her, unable to feel the least bit intimidated by the glare she was receiving.

Turning her gaze from Yang to Blake, whose cat ears remained drooped as she avoided looking over her shoulder, Fiona rolled her eyes with a huff and walked around the two to take a seat at the desk before them.

“So, let’s get to it.” Hopping into the chair behind the desk, her body practically vanishing beneath it as she did her best to sit in a way where she could glare between them at eye level, the girl whose badge at her breast read  _ ‘Fiona’ _ crossed her arms and continued to look between the two of them in a fury. “Go ahead and explain to me  _ why _ the two of you assaulted both the head of security  _ and _ the sister of tonight's VIP guest.

“Well, so the thing about  _ that _ is…” Leaning back nervously in her seat, Yang realized that the truth of the matter would be, and with Blake’s mixture of negative and worried emotions running through her she couldn’t find the confidence to say it in a believable way.

“Oh  _ please _ don’t tell me you’re sticking to the story you told Robyn.” Pinching the bridge of her nose, Fiona looked at Yang who gave an unsure shrug.

“I guess that would depend on what that story was?” Giving a forced smile, Yang watched as Fiona rolled her eyes and let out a sigh.

“ _ Apparently _ the story you gave Robyn is that your sister is, much like  _ everyone else  _ standing in line, Weiss Schnee’s soulmate. Then, when they wouldn’t believe you to let you backstage to see her, you decided your best course of action was to start a brawl in order to give your sister the chance to barge past security to try and find her on her own. Does that sound familiar?” Crossing her arms once more, still doing her best to generate a confident and intimidating aura, Fiona’s eyes narrowed at Yang who could only give a slow and awkward nod.

“I mean, I wouldn't call it a brawl, but uhh yeah... that about sums it up.” With the worry in her system Yang started to wonder if this situation was going to end up a worst case scenario. Given they were still being detained and interrogated like this she wondered if Ruby had managed to make it to Weiss or not. She’d assumed that, once the two met and Weiss could confirm Ruby’s identity, this whole situation would somehow manage to get swept under the rug. She started to worry that Ruby had never made it to Weiss, or worst yet, they weren’t truly soulmates.

“And  _ you _ .” Turning her fierce gaze to Blake, who was still doing her best to avert her eyes, Fiona slammed both hands on the table and began to raise her voice. “It’s one thing for patrons attending the event to assault a person, but when it’s a  _ faunus _ that does it, and in  _ Atlas _ of all places! Do you have any idea what kind of setback you might cause for the faunus of this region!?” 

“I’m sorry…” Blake’s voice was a murmur, the faunus girl fully aware of the damage she may have caused.

“I don’t know what could’ve possessed you to do such a thing and think it would work out for  _ anyone _ . You attacked a  _ Schnee _ for Gods’ sake! Why in the world-” As Fiona started her rant, Yang found a passion burn deep within her that pulled her from the swirling emotions mixing within Blake.

“Hey, she didn’t mean to do anything! It was  _ my _ fault! Blake didn’t even understand what was happening at the time! She’d never do  _ anything _ to try and hurt the faunus intentionally, so why don’t you lay off!?” This time it was Yang’s turn to slam her hands on the desk. She stood, her hair practically glowing with her rage, and as she towered over Fiona and glared down at her she could see the small faunus girl tilt her head in confusion.

“What do you mean she didn’t  _ mean _ to do it!? How does a person just  _ accidentally _ attack someone like that!” Fiona was in disbelief at the claim that Blake had somehow not intended to attack Winter Schnee in full view of the public eye the way she had.

“It was just sort of… instinctual in a way. I don’t really know how else to describe it.” Blake had finally mustered the will to speak, Yang’s passion flowing into her and washing away all the negative feelings floating through her mind. “I felt something through the bond that told me I needed to help, and that the only way to do it was to do what I did. Honestly I didn’t even realize what was happening until it was already over. I even had to ask  _ why _ once we-”

“The bond?” Fiona abruptly cut off Blake, who looked to her with a slow nod.

“Yes?” Pausing for a second, her thoughts interrupted by Fiona’s sudden reaction to her explanation, Blake felt further confused when she saw the girl’s entire demeanor seem to change in an instant.

“Wait! Does that mean the two of you are _soulmates_!?” Clapping her hands together, Fiona’s eyes were practically sparkling as she looked between the two of them. The intimidating aura Fiona had been attempting to maintain vanished in an instant, her voice changing from angry and frustrated to elated and overjoyed.

“I- what?” Yang was so caught off guard by the girl’s change in attitude that she couldn’t even think of a response. “I mean, yeah, I guess. We only sorta just found out about it, but why does that matter?”

“Oh uhh, I mean, it doesn’t, but…” Fiona, realizing how unprofessional she’d suddenly become, did her best to resume to a more authoritative state. All the same, her cheeks remained bright pink, and she couldn’t help but continue grinning at the pair. “It’s just kinda cute is all. I hear all sorts of crazy stories about what the bond has made people do before, those wild acts of passion and love that seem to come out of nowhere! I’m just glad you two aren’t the pair of degenerates that Robyn _kind of_ implied you were.”

This time it was Fiona’s turn to give an awkward chuckle as she rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment.

“So then, are we still in trouble?” With Fiona suddenly in a seemingly better mood, Yang wondered if their story of chaotic romance would be enough to get the two of them off the hook.

“Hmm, I can’t say for sure one way or the other. Regardless of  _ your _ good intentions and  _ your _ being influenced by the bond, the two of you still assaulted people in plain view of the public. In particular, the fact a faunus attacked a Schnee isn’t something that is going to just disappear, and we don’t even know if your sister really is Weiss’s soulmate either. There’s just so much against you both that I’m pretty sure this isn’t going to end well for anybody.” Pursing her lips slightly, Fiona let out a slow and soft sigh as she lowered herself into her seat and started to stare at the ceiling. “I can’t even tell whose reputation is going to be more hurt by this fiasco either; the Happy Huntress security firm for letting someone past or the faunus as a whole for the incident that I’m sure all of Atlas has probably heard about by now.”

Slowly Fiona started to sink in her chair, a weak grumble being let out as she slowly disappeared from Yang and Blake’s view.

“Again, I’m  _ so _ sorry if I’ve caused any trouble. The last thing I’d want to do is cause the faunus in Atlas any more trouble than they already deal with. If there’s  _ anything _ I can do to fix this, then please let me help.” Blake stood, doing her beast to apologize further for the events that had transpired.

“Well first I’m just going to have to keep an ear out on how quickly the rumors spread and how bad the story’s been spun. I’ve been working pretty hard to improve relations between the faunus and the humans here for a while, so I’d like to hope I have at least a little bit of a buffer to help cushion the impact.” Fiona glanced at her scroll, having placed it on the table when she’d sat down, and glared at the device almost in fear of what she might read if she were to open it.

“Working to improve them _how_? I thought you worked security or something.” Yang pursed her lips and frowned. She knew how important the reputation of the faunus was, but it felt to her that somehow Fiona had been taking this particular incident a little too personally.

“Ah, well that’s how I make enough money to live on. I actually spend most of my time running a non-profit civil rights group of sorts. Lots of events and such to try and make more peace between the faunus and the humans. If you two weren’t such troublemakers I’d be tempted to ask you to come to an event or even put your story in a newsletter about  _ TwoSouls _ . A faunus and a human, soulmates finding themselves at this event all the way in Atlas… it could do so much good.” Fiona smiled softly, thinking about what a jackpot their story would’ve been if it wasn’t as chaotic as it was.

“Wait, you  _ run _ the non-profit?” Blake was suddenly hit with a memory from less than a week ago. Her rather lengthy discussion with Ilia regarding her friend’s sheer distaste for the entire soulmate bond scenario coming back to her in an instant. She felt as if her heart skipped a beat.

_ “Could it be?” _

“Hmm? Yeah, I mean I’ve been running it for a few years now actually. Let me tell you though, it wasn’t easy at first. The faunus of Atlas mostly just try to keep their heads down, so talking about gathering for peaceful rallies or protests in public didn’t exactly bring in the numbers I was hoping for.” Chuckling softly, remember how many weeks it had taken her to even get her first signature, Fiona looked to Blake with a curious gaze. “Why do you ask?”

“Assuming we’re not about to be hauled off to jail or anything of the sorts, would you be willing to talk to a friend of mine when this is all over? She’s a faunus friend that came with me all the way to Atlas from Menagerie, and I think the two of you would  _ really _ get along.” Blake felt her heart flutter, her eyes wide and her cheeks blushing as she felt a rush of hope in her heart.

“I suppose a quick chat wouldn’t hurt, I always love to meet new people after all! Though uhh, can I ask  _ why _ ?” It wasn’t as if Fiona was opposed to the idea of meeting Blake’s friend, but the way she’d worded the request implied there was some ulterior motive to introducing the pair aside from just ‘getting along’.

“You’ll just have to find out.” Chuckling to herself, even causing Yang to break into a smile, Blake felt like she suddenly had this secret she couldn’t wait to let out. The two shared a look, and Yang could immediately tell what Blake’s expression meant.

It felt like everywhere they looked today, love was in the air.


End file.
